


Consolation

by AnnaOnTheMoon



Series: A Tangled Web [3]
Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: 2340s, 2350s, Adult Children, Angst, Cheating, Cheating spouse, Children, Comfort, Deception, Divorce, Drama, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Family Drama, Family Dynamics, Family Secrets, Family you Choose, Friends to Lovers, Humor, Marriage, Mystery, Pregnancy, Recovery, Second marriage, Space Opera, Stargazer Crew, Suspense, USS Stargazer, blended families - Freeform, starbase 32, stargazer - Freeform, step-families
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-02-16 19:49:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 83,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13060953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaOnTheMoon/pseuds/AnnaOnTheMoon
Summary: Jack Crusher is left in a coma after performing an EVA that saves the Stargazer.  Beverly turns to her best friend for comfort. As Jack lies in a coma, how many secrets and lies from his past will they discover? How will the new family unit emerging cope?  Stargazer era.Part One of A Tangled Web (yes, I know it says 3)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this whole thing came to me while I was doing some last minute Christmas shopping. I wrote the first three pages tapped out on Google Keep while I was waiting for my bus home. Thanks for the title go to SophieD.

Jean-Luc, captain of the _USS Stargazer_ , paced the small bridge. What was taking so long?  "Bridge to Crusher. Jack, what's going on out there?"  
  
"We almost have it Johnny....just a little more....come on Pug, we can do it....just aim your phaser over there....." Jack's voice got cut off by a loud boom.   
  
"JACK! Report! Pug!" Jean-Luc went flying through the ship to the starboard airlock. He hastily shoved on am EVA suit and was out the airlock before Gilaad Ben Zoma could stop him.   
  
Jean-Luc used the handholds to get to the nacelles. One of the nacelles was floating free. Jack and Pug had saved the ship...but at what cost?  
  
Jean-Luc found Pug first. His eyes were wide and Jean-Luc was sure he was dead. He moved on. Once he found Jack, he would retrieve Pug's body. Jack was floating, tethered to the ship. His helmet had cracked and there was blood on his forehead. Jack looked like he was asleep, but until Jean-Luc got his body inside he wouldn't know if he was alive or dead. He untied Jack from the ship and attached the stay to his belt. Moving back to Pug, he did the same. As soon as they were safely in the airlock, Jean-Luc removed his helmet. "MEDIC!!! Medical emergency in Starboard  Airlock! Two casualties!"   
  
Ben Zoma had acted fast when his captain went out the airlock and there was a medic team already waiting.  They pronounced Pug dead, but rushed Jack to sickbay.  Ben Zoma helped Jean-Luc remove the rest of the EVA suit. "Number One, what am I going to tell Beverly?"  
  
###  
  
Jean-Luc looked down on his old friend on the biobed. His eyes were closed and he was draped in tubes. The large contraption bridging across his body was helping his lungs to inflate and deflate. Another machine kept his heart pumping. Jack had suffered near asphyxiation and had fallen into a coma. Doctor Greyhorse didn't know the full extent of the damage, and wouldn't until a neurospecialist could take over Jack's care on Starbase 32.  
  
Beverly, Jack's wife was already on Starbase 32. She was a trainee doctor and was raising her and Jack's five year old son on the base. Starbase 32 was a regular stop for the Stargazer, so the family saw each other frequently along with Jean-Luc, who had been made an honorary uncle to their son, Wesley.  
  
Jean-Luc had fallen in love with the young redhead before she had started dating Jack, but had never told her how he felt, feeling she would think him too old for her. The three of them used to spend all of their shore leaves together and Beverly soon became his other best friend. But now he would have to tell her he had been unable to keep Jack safe and he didn't quite know how.   
  
After Jean-Luc received an update on Jack, he retreated to his ready room and initiated a call to Beverly. Beverly's smiling face filled the screen. "Oh! Hello, Jean-Luc, I was expecting Jack." In the background, Wesley was trying to climb into his mother's lap to see the screen. "Uncle Jawn Loo! I have stuffs to tell you!"  
  
Jean-Luc smiled at the sight of his "nephew". "Hello, Wesley. Do you mind if I speak with Mommy first?"   
  
"Ok. But I wants to tawk to you."  
  
"You have my word, Wesley." Jean-Luc watched as Wesley slid off Beverly's lap and disappeared out of view. He looked at Beverly and her smile faded.   
  
"Jack?"

Jean-Luc looked down, not able to meet her gaze even through the vidscreen.  “I...I’m sorry, Beverly.” 

“Is he...dead?”  A tear rolled down Beverly’s cheek and Jean-Luc wanted to be with her to wipe her tears away.

“No, not dead . But he’s...he’s in a coma.  Doctor Greyhorse doesn’t know if he...” Jean-Luc’s voice faded as he found himself wiping a tear away from his eyes.  “Greyhorse doesn’t know if he’ll wake up, or what state he will be in when he does.  I can forward the medical report to you...you’ll probably understand it better than me.”  Beverly nodded and Jean-Luc pressed a few buttons to transmit the report.  He watched as Beverly studied the file, hoping she would find something Greyhorse hadn’t that would increase Jack’s chances. 

Beverly frowned.  “Naturally, you’re bringing him here to Doctor Quiace?”

“Yes, but Beverly, we’re still weeks out. I don’t...I don’t know what to do.”  He finished lamely.

“Where are you?”

“The closest base to us is Starbase Twelve, but their medical facilities can’t help us, we already checked.” 

“If I get to Twelve, can you pick us up?” 

“You and Wes?”  Beverly nodded.  “Jean-Luc...I need to see him.  Just in case...well...what if he doesn’t make it?” 

“He will make it, Beverly.  I know he will.  Jack is strong.  And when he has someone like you waiting for him....of course he’ll make it.”  Jean-Luc blushed.  Beverly grinned.  Jean-Luc really was adorable when he made comments like that.  Beverly sometimes found it hard to ignore her feelings for the man, despite being married to Jack.  Beverly pressed some more buttons on her console. 

“Wes and I can leave tonight on a fast shuttle and be there in...one week?  That doesn’t look right. How far away are you?”

“A few days from SB Twelve, about six from you.”

“Could we put Jack on a passenger shuttle to get him here faster?”

“No, unfortunately. We asked. They aren’t equipped to transport medical emergencies like Jack. What we really need are those hospital ships they keep talking about, but it sounds like those are at least thirty years away.”

“Tell me about it, Jean-Luc.  I’ve even written a paper about the benefit of having hospital ships, but command is determined to finish the plans for the new class of ship first.”

“If you come to Starbase Twelve, I can have a shuttle meet you and it won’t take us off course.” 

“Please don’t send Pug. I can’t stand the...” Jean-Luc had a pained look on his face. “What did I say?”

“Pug....Pug didn’t make it.  He was with Jack when it happened and by the time I got out to check on them, Pug was dead.” 

“I’m sorry, Jean-Luc, that was very insensitive of me.” 

“You didn’t know.  I think I will come to Starbase Twelve to meet you.  I suspect it’s the only way that will keep Wesley in check in a small shuttle.”  Beverly’s eyes twinkled. 

“You sure you want to be in a small shuttle with my son?  You realise you’re talking about your nephew, right?  The one who managed to take apart Jack’s old phaser before we even knew he had it?”  Jean-Luc chuckled. “I’ll endeavour to cope.  I’ll just let him pilot....”

“You wouldn’t!”

“Ah, watch me, my dear.”  Jean-Luc’s face turned sober again. It was nice to banter with Beverly, but the situation with Jack was too serious to lose sight of it.  “You’ll give me your itinerary?  Just in case....”  he trailed off, not wanting to say ‘In case Jack dies’. Beverly nodded. 

“I’ll see you in a week.  Now, where is that nephew of mine and what on Earth is so important that he can’t send it to me in a letter?” 

“I have no idea.  But wait and I’ll get him for you.”

“Beverly?  Are you going to tell him about Jack?”

“Yes, but only that he is injured. No reason to worry him.”  Beverly disappeared from the monitor and soon Wesley appeared.  “Uncle Jawn Loo!!”  Wesley turned to his mother and made a shooing motion with his hand, obviously  something he had picked up from one of the adults in his life. “Moooooommmmm-eee, I want to talk to Uncle Jawn Loo alooooone.”  Beverly shrugged at Jean-Luc in the monitor and backed out of the room. “Don’t go when Wes is done, I’ll make the travel arrangements now.” Jen-Luc nodded and focussed all his attention on the energetic five-year-old on the screen.

###

“Captain, are you sure you want to go alone? We can send someone with you...or I could go and meet Beverly and Wesley...”

“Gilaad, please.  It’s Beverly.  I told her I would personally meet her at Starbase Twelve, and I intend on keeping that promise.”  Ben Zoma sighed inwardly.  He knew his Captain had feelings for the Second Officer’s wife, and would do anything for her.  “If you’re sure, Sir.”

“I’ll be fine, Gilaad.  Two days to get there, one day to wait for Beverly to arrive, and then two or three more days, depending on your location, to get back to the ship.  You can handle things for five days, can’t you?”

“Of course, Sir.”

“Then it’s settled.  Is the shuttle ready for me?”

“Aye.”  Jean-Luc slung his pack over his shoulder.  “Then, you have command until I return, Number One.” 

The shuttlecraft on board the _Stargazer_ were small and slightly cramped for living space, so they really were not designed for long trips.  There was the main console at the front with seats for pilot and co-pilot, and  two side panels that could be activated for science or engineering use.  Behind and up a few short steps there was a table that doubled up as an eating area and a meeting area, with a replicator not too far away.  Beyond the table there was a curtained off room on the left that contained two bunks and a small facility for bathing, and the opposite side contained a very small sickbay.  More like a first-aid area, if truth be told.  At the rear, the shuttle held a single transporter pad and a larger multi-use cargo area.  It would be cramped space for him, Beverly, and Wesley, but they would be fine for a few days.  With nothing in the cargo bay, it at least would give young Wesley plenty of space to run around and play in.

Jean-Luc tossed his bag onto one of the bunks and pulled out a book. Once he was safely on his way, he could engage the auto-nav and relax with a book.  Beverly and Wesley were already on their way to the base, but Jean-Luc still sent her a short message to get her know he would meet her in three days.  The message would get routed to her personal PADD he knew she always had with her. 

Jean-Luc docked his shuttle in the shuttle bay on Starbase 12 and was greeted by the quartermaster.  “Captain Picard, we weren’t expecting you.”

“I’m sorry. Would you happen to have quarters for me for two nights?  I’m here to meet some passengers off the shuttle from Starbase Thirty-two that arrives tomorrow.  The day after, we’ll be departing again for the _Stargazer_.” 

“Jack Crusher’s wife?”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows at the man.  “Actually, yes.  And their son will be with her. How did you know?”

“Her name’s on the manifest for the shuttle.  Only reason I can think of for you to be here to pick up passengers.  How is Commander Crusher?”

“No change, unfortunately.”  The quartermaster frowned.  “Right, well if you’ll come with me, we can sort out some quarters for you.  I assume you’d like a room for Doctor Crusher and her son for tomorrow?”

“If you could spare it.  Or, if you could arrange quarters for me that would be large enough to share, that would be fine.  Beverly and I have bunked together before and I daresay Wesley would relish the thought of bunking in with his uncle.”  The quartermaster chuckled.  “That might be easier to arrange.”

Jean-Luc made sure he was waiting at the bottom of the gangway connecting the passenger shuttle to the base and when Beverly appeared holding onto Wesley’s hand, he couldn’t help but smile.  Wesley tore his hand out of his mother’s and came running down the gangway nearly toppling over a Bolian to launch himself at Jean-Luc. 

“Uncle Jawn Loo!  Mommy said you’d be here!”  Jean-Luc caught the boy and hefted him up into his arms.  “Oof.  Have you been eating bricks?”  Wesley giggled and flung his arms around Jean-Luc’s neck.  “Uncle Jawn Loo...is Daddy ok? Mommy told me he was hurted...”  Jean-Luc lowered the boy to the floor and knelt down to look him in the eye.  “Wes, your daddy was injured, but you know what?  He saved the ship.  Your daddy is a hero.”  Wesley beamed. “You’re my hero too, Uncle Jawn Loo.”  Jean-Luc ruffled the boy’s hair and held onto his hand as Beverly continued down the gangway at a more subdued pace. 

“Jean-Luc.”  Beverly wrapped her arms around Jean-Luc and buried her face in his neck.  Jean-Luc wrapped his free arm across Beverly’s back and held her close as he felt her tears wet his neck.  “Beverly,  it’s going to be alright.  Jack’s a fighter, you know that.”  Beverly sniffed and lowered her arms.  “You’re right.”  She lifted her head and gave Jean-Luc a kiss on the cheek. “Hello, Jean-Luc.”  Jean-Luc returned the kiss and reluctantly let go of her.  “We have quarters for the evening here if you want to rest up...or we could board my shuttle and be on our way.” 

“As much as I want to get to Jack, I think I’d like to rest first.  Perhaps take Wesley to the arboretum so he can run around? There was barely any room on that shuttle for children to play.”  Jean-Luc nodded and took the bag Beverly had slung over her shoulder.  He placed a light hand on her back and she leaned into his shoulder. “Thank you for meeting me.”

“Anything for you, Beverly.”

###

Wesley was running around the cargo area of the shuttle.  “Uncle Jawn Loo, can I fwy the shuttle?” 

“How about you sit next to me and watch while I fly the shuttle?” 

“But...”

“No buts, young man. Listen to your uncle.”  Wesley pouted.  Beverly glanced over at Jean-Luc and smiled.  “Sorry.  He really doesn’t like being cooped up in shuttles.  I’m hoping once we’re on the _Stargazer_ he behaves himself better.”

“It’s fine, Beverly.  I’ll get us out into open space, set the auto-nav, and then let Wesley think he’s flying the shuttle. It’s no problem.”  He reached out and squeezed her hand.  “Why don’t you get some sleep?  The bunks aren’t the most comfortable, but they’re serviceable.  You look tired.”  Beverly shot her best friend a wry smile. “Is that your way of telling me I look horrible?”

“Beverly, you wound me.  You know I think you’re always beautiful.”  Beverly blushed and leaned up to give Jean-Luc a kiss on the cheek.  “You’re lying, but it’s a nice sentiment.”  She turned to Wesley. “I’m going to go get some sleep. You listen to your uncle and don’t touch anything unless he says you can!”

“Ok, Mommy.” 

Beverly disappeared behind the curtain and removed her shoes, jacket, and skirt before laying down on one of the lower bunks.  Surprisingly, the bunks were wider than the ones she and Wesley had to endure on the other shuttle.  They also were fairly comfortable.  Beverly rolled over and inhaled the pillow.  _Jean-Luc must have used this bunk. The pillow smells like his aftershave._ She shook her head. _I shouldn’t know what my best friend’s aftershave smells like..._ Beverly drifted off to sleep thinking about her best friend instead of her ill husband. 

Out in the cockpit, for Jean-Luc refused to consider it a Bridge, Jean-Luc was instructing Wesley.  Wesley was sat in the co-pilot’s seat on his knees so he could see everything and listened as Jean-Luc received instructions for leaving the shuttle bay.  When Jean-Luc pointed at one of the buttons in front of Wesley, he pushed it and got a deep thrill as he heard the thrusters come on.  “Did I do that?” Jean-Luc grinned at the boy. “You did indeed, Wes.”  Jean-Luc busied himself entering in the coordinates for the small shuttle to travel to and once they were free of the station, he engaged the auto-Nav and locked it to his security code so Wesley couldn’t accidentally turn it off. 

“Right. I promised you flying lessons when you were older last time we visited, didn’t I? “ Wesley nodded.  “I’m older now, Uncle Jawn Loo!” 

“So you are.  So let’s call this lesson one...” 

Jean-Luc spent several hours explaining everything on the console to Wesley, who to his surprise never seemed to get bored and just kept on asking questions.  Jean-Luc knew Wesley was bright, but he hadn’t realised just how smart the boy was and made a mental note to talk to Beverly about Wesley’s education.  Jean-Luc knew how hard it was to be the smartest kid in your class, but at least Wesley didn’t have a belligerent older brother like he had. 

“Uncle Jawn Loo, is Daddy going to die?” Jean-Luc faltered. How could he answer the boy?  Truthfully? 

“Wesley...I think we should wait for your mother to talk about your father, alright?”

“Mommy cried a lot.”  Jean-Luc felt his heart tighten. “Wes, she’s just worried about your father.”

“Are you worried about him?”

“Of course I am, he’s my best friend. He’s very ill, Wes.  That’s why we’re going to go see him.”

“Cos Mommy can fix him?”

“I...don’t know, Wes.  I think she’ll try.  We’re going to bring him to Doctor Quaice.”

“I like Doctor Quace.  An’ Mrs Quaice is nice too.”  Wesley yawned. 

“Hmm, I think it’s bedtime for cadets.” 

“Nooooo. I’m not....sleepy....”  Wesley yawned again and rubbed at his eyes .

“Tell you what. You put on some pyjamas and I’ll get you a glass of milk and then read you a story, ok?”

“Ok, Uncle Jawn Loo.”

“But be quiet, we don’t want to wake up your mother.”  Wesley held his finger to his lips and tiptoed behind the curtain.  Jean-Luc went over to the replicator and asked it for a glass of warm milk with a dash of nutmeg, his Aunt Adele’s favourite method for getting to sleep and ducked behind the curtain.  His heart was in his throat when he saw Beverly on his bunk, her red hair splayed out on the pillow.  She looked like an angel.  He shook himself out of his thoughts and helped Wesley into the bunk on the other side and then he crawled in next to him.  He passed Wesley his milk and took the book Wesley held out and began to read.

Beverly slowly woke up and listened to the soft baritone of her best friend reading a bedtime story to Wesley.  She smiled.  For someone who claimed to not like children, he really had a way with them.  Or perhaps it was just with Wesley.  Jean-Luc had told Beverly once before that Wesley reminded him of himself when he was his age.  Beverly rolled over and took in the sight before her.  On the opposite bunk,  Jean-Luc had Wesley cuddled in his arms as he read to him.  _He really would make an excellent father. It’s a shame he never had any children._  

Wesley had finally fallen asleep and Jean-Luc untangled himself from the boy before tucking the covers in around him.  “Lights, 30 percent,”  he whispered as the room’s lighting dimmed.  He was backing out of the room when Beverly stuck her hand out and pulled him down onto the bunk with her. 

“Where’s my bedtime story?”  Jean-Luc smiled in the low light. “Sorry if we woke you. Please, get some more sleep.” 

“What about you?”

“Well, someone appears to be sleeping in my bunk...”  Beverly grinned.  “It seems pretty roomy.  I think you’d fit.”

“ _Beverly_....”

“We used to share a bed all the time, what’s the difference now?”

“Jack?”  The last time he had shared a bed with Beverly, she hadn’t been married to Jack, let alone dating him. 

“I...” tears pooled in her eyes.  “Jean-Luc, I just need someone to hold me right now...please?”

Jean-Luc shrugged out of his jacket.  “I think I can manage that.” 

“Aren’t you going to take off your trousers? If you’ve forgotten how, I’ll help. ” Beverly cheekily reached for the button on Jean-Luc’s trousers.

“ _Beverly!”_ He shook his head at his friend and removed his trousers. “There. Happy now?”  Beverly lifted up a corner of the cover for Jean-Luc to slide in next to her.  It was a tight fit, but if they both were on their sides, they would fit.  “Mmm, yes.”  She gave Jean-Luc a chaste kiss on the lips before rolling over and pressing her back into his chest.  Jean-Luc groaned, but wrapped his arm around her to hold her close.  It was going to be a _very_ long night...


	2. Chapter 2

Beverly woke up to a warm hand resting on her stomach.  While they were sleeping, Jean-Luc’s hand must have found its way under her shirt.  She gave a delightful wiggle and she heard a groan from behind her.

“Beverly, please don’t do that.”  Beverly moved her hand on top of his and laced her fingers between his before giving his hand a squeeze.  “Why not?” 

“Beverly, I am using all my resolve right now to keep _certain things_ from happening.  _Certain things_ that happen when a beautiful woman has her backside pressed up against my crotch and wiggles.”  Beverly’s eyes went wide as she realised what Jean-Luc was trying to say to her.  She grinned wickedly as she rolled herself over to face him and slid a leg over his hips.  “There, now my ass isn’t pressed into your crotch.”

“ _Beverly_.”  Jean-Luc groaned again.  He could feel Beverly’s heat pressed against his leg and if she didn’t stop soon, he knew he would embarrass himself by becoming hard. He moved his hand to her leg to move her leg off of him, but Beverly slid his hand up her leg to cup her bottom.  Jean-Luc squeezed his eyes shut and Beverly just softly giggled and gave him a kiss. 

Jean-Luc’s eyes flew open and before he knew what he was doing, he was kissing her back and sliding his hand into the back of her knickers to knead her bottom.  Beverly moaned into his lips and shifted so she was on top of him.  Jean-Luc’s hands moved from her bottom to slip under her camisole.  He was working them up to her breasts when he paused and dropped his hands to her hips.  “Beverly, we can’t.  This isn’t right.” 

“Why not?”  Beverly asked as she reached for the bottom of her camisole to pull it off.  Jean-Luc grabbed her hands. “Well, for one, your son is sleeping on the other side of the room.”  Beverly frowned.  “And two...Jack. ”  Jean-Luc wrapped his arms around her hips and held her close.  “And you don’t know how much I want you.”  A tear leaked out of Beverly’s eye. 

“Jean-Luc, I...”  He held a finger up to her lips.  “Shh, you don’t need to say anything.”  Beverly kissed his finger and drew it into her mouth, lightly sucking on it.  Jean-Luc closed his eyes once more and felt his desire course through his body.  “Beverly...” 

She let go of his finger with a soft pop. “Jean-Luc, I need this.  Please?”  Jean-Luc groaned again and glanced over at Wesley, still fast asleep in the other bed.  “Beverly...not with Wesley in the room.” 

“But it’s not a no?”  Jean-Luc deeply kissed her.  “It’s not a no.  It’s a later. If you still want this.”   Beverly nodded and snuggled back down into his arms.  “Then...will you just hold me for now?”  Jean-Luc kissed her hair.  “Anything you want, my love. Anything you want.”  Beverly smiled and drifted off back to sleep.

When Jean-Luc opened his eyes again, Wesley was standing next to the bunk, but didn't seem disturbed to see his mother sharing the bed with Jean-Luc.  “Uncle Jawn Loo? If Mommy is sleeping, and you’re sleeping, who’s flying the shuttle?”

“Auto-Nav, Wesley.  I set in the coordinates and it flies itself until I turn it off.”

“But what if something gets in the way like an ask-terroid?”

“The ship will warn me with a loud noise.”

“Oh, Ok.”  Beverly stirred and opened her eyes. “Hello, handsome.”  Jean-Luc grinned. “Me or Wes?” 

“Hmm. Depends on who can bring me a coffee.”

“I cans do it Mommy!”  Wesley jumped off the bunk and ran to the replicator, the curtain swishing shut behind him.   Jean-Luc got up and hastily shoved on his trousers and wandered out into the main area shirt and shoeless to give Beverly some privacy.  He found Wesley in front of the replicator frowning.

“What’s wrong, Wes?”

“I asked it for Mommy’s cowfee, but it told me it couldn’t.” 

“Show me.”

“Compooter, Cowfee for Mommy, please.”

 _“Unable to comply”_ Wesley frowned.  “See?  Uncle Jawn Loo, why won’t it let me get Mommy her cowfee?”

“It might not be able to give coffee to a child. Here, let me get it for you.  Computer: coffee, black.”  The replicator whirled to life and soon a cup of coffee was sitting on the dispenser.  Jean-Luc picked it up and took a sip before handing it to Wesley. “Carry it carefully, Wes. I’ll get your juice.”  Jean-Luc kept one eye on Wesley as he ordered up a glass of apple juice for Wesley and a cup of coffee for himself. 

“Look Mommy, I gotted you cowfee!” 

“Thank you, Wes.  Did Uncle Jean-Luc help?”  Wesley nodded.  “Did you thank him for his help?”  Wesley shook his head as Jean-Luc entered the bunk carrying his coffee and a juice for Wesley.  “Don’t you think you should?”

“Uncle Jawn Loo, thank you for helping me.”

“You’re welcome Wes.  Here’s your juice.”

“Thank you.”  Beverly beamed at her son. “Much better,” she glanced over at Jean-Luc.  “How long did we sleep for?” 

“I’ll check everything once I take a shower and get dressed properly, unless you’d like the shower first?” 

“No, go ahead.  I’ll get Wesley set up with some books in the lounge.”  Jean-Luc grinned. “The lounge?”

“Well, what else would you call it?”

“I don’t know. It’s just the area with a table and some couches.” 

“See? Lounge.”

“Whatever you say.”

Jean-Luc was standing under the sonic blast when he felt a hand reach out and grab his rear.  He spun around and exclaimed “Beverly!” before dropping his hands to cover his crotch.  Beverly laughed.  “Room for two in there?”   Jean-Luc swallowed. “Uhm...Wesley?”

“Reading.  He won’t notice we’re both gone for at least an hour.”  She trailed a finger down Jean-Luc’s chest. Jean-Luc shuddered under her touch.  “An....an hour you say?”  Beverly nodded.  Jean-Luc moved his hands and pulled her towards him and crushed his lips against hers.  He reached behind and switched off the sonic blast before assisting Beverly in removing her clothes.  Beverly was beautiful, and he told her as much.  She blushed. “You’re not so bad looking yourself.” 

“Beverly, are you sure this is what you want?  I...don’t want to do anything you don’t want.”

“Jean-Luc?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up and make love to me in this shower stall.” 

Jean-Luc didn’t know what this would mean for them in the future, and he didn’t really care.  But if Beverly wanted to make love to him right now, he wasn’t going to say no.  He did manage to keep himself from blurting out “I love you”, but just barely. Beverly was pushed against the wall of the shower stall with her legs wrapped around Jean-Luc’s waist and her arms wrapped around his shoulders.  When Beverly came, crying his name, it was all he needed to be pushed over the edge and he thrust up into her and came with a grunt.  He dropped his head to her shoulder and lightly bit it to keep himself from saying those words. Because he knew if he said them, there would be no going back for him.  He was utterly and irrevocably in love with his best friend. 

Beverly lowered her legs and reached over to activate the water function of the shower.  Once the spray of water was covering the two of them, Beverly let her tears fall.  Being with Jean-Luc had felt so right, despite it being wrong.  She was torn.  Here he was, bringing her to her husband who may or may not ever wake up from a coma, and all she wanted was to make love to her best friend.  She rested her head against his chest under the spray and let the tears fall, hoping Jean-Luc didn’t notice.

He noticed.  He felt her chest heave with a sob and he tilted her head up.  “Beverly, are you alright?  If you regret what we did...”

“Trouble is, I don’t regret it.” 

“I see.”  He reached for the shampoo dispenser and put a small amount in his hands and motioned for her to turn around.  He worked the shampoo through her long locks slowly and methodically, not saying a word.  When he turned her around again and backed her under the spray to rinse off the soap, he kissed her soundly. “I don’t regret this, either.” 

“Jean-Luc, I lo...” 

“Please don’t say it, Bev.  Not unless you mean it, really mean it.” 

“But I do...”

“I know. I do, too.  But if I say it to you...I won’t be able to ever walk away from you.” 

“Oh.”  Jean-Luc turned off the shower and wrapped Beverly in a towel before grabbing one for himself.  “We should probably check on Wesley...and check in with Gilaad....”  Beverly nodded and kissed Jean-Luc one more time before gathering her clothing and leaving him in the bathroom.

###

“Number One, how are things on the _Stargazer_?” Jean-Luc squinted at the fuzzy image of the bridge of the _Stargazer_

“Handling it fine, Captain.  I took the liberty of appointing Idun as  temporary second, I hope you don’t mind.”

“No, Lieutenant Asamund would make a fine temporary second officer.  At least while Jack is still....”  Jean-Luc trailed off.  “How is he?  Any change?”

“I’m sorry, Sir, Beverly...no.”

“Gilaad, could you ask Doctor Greyhorse to send me Jack’s updated file? I’d like to take a look at it.”

“Of course, Beverly,”  Ben Zoma pressed a few buttons on his console. “You should have it momentarily.” 

“Thank you.  Jean-Luc, I’m going to go look this over at the science station.”  Jean-Luc nodded and gave her hand a squeeze before turning his attention back to his First Officer.  “Have you determined the cause of the accident?” 

“No, Sir.  The current theory is that the explosion happened just as they cut free the nacelle.  It must have been the built up energy we were trying to disperse.”  Jean-Luc nodded.  Wesley came into view of the screen.  “Hiya Mister Gilaad!”  Jean-Luc shook his head. “I’m Jawn Loo, but Gilaad he can say.”  Ben Zoma gave his Captain a wry smile. 

“Hello, Wesley.  Staying out of trouble?”

“Uh-huh.  Uncle Jawn Loo let me fwy yesterday!”  Ben Zoma raised his eyebrows.  “He did, did he?”  Jean-Luc mouthed “auto-Nav” behind the boy and Ben Zoma nodded.  “Well, if you’re half as good as some of the guys here, we might have to give you a job when you get here!”  Wesley giggled. 

Beverly looked up from her science station. “Wes, leave your uncle to his conversation.  Come on, we’ll get some Lunch.” 

“Ok, Mommy. Bye Mister Gilaad. See you soon.”

“Bye, Wes.”  Ben Zoma watched until Wesley and Beverly were out of earshot. “Jean-Luc...did something happen between you and Beverly?” 

“I don’t know why you would think that, Number One.”

“You’re acting different around her.  Be careful, Jean-Luc.  We can mend broken bones, but not hearts.”

“Yes, thank you for your words of wisdom, Number One.  Now, it appears we should reach you in about 36 hours?”

“Yes, Sir. We’ll hold position until your arrival.”

“See you then.  Picard out.”  He ended the transmission and sat back in his chair. Gilaad could tell?  No, surely he couldn’t.  He shook his head.  Wesley bounded back into the cockpit area.  “Uncle Jawn Loo...it’s Lunch time!”

“Lead on, my boy.”

###

After playing ball with a replicated ball in the cargo bay with Wesley for what felt like hours, Wesley told his uncle he was hungry.  They found Beverly still pouring over notes at the science station, a cold cup of coffee next to her.  Jean-Luc gently turned her away from the computer. “Come on, my love. Wesley has informed me it is dinner time. You’ve been staring at those notes all day”

“I know, but I keep thinking I missed something. I’ve forwarded them to Dalen, too.  Hopefully that will give him a head start for when we get there with Jack.”  Jean-Luc nodded and gently rubbed her shoulders.  Beverly leaned into his touch.  “Oh, that feels good. Please don’t stop.”  Jean-Luc grinned.  “I left Wesley in charge of the replicator for dinner. Should I be worried?” 

“Hmm.  It’s going to be either spaghetti or cheeseburgers.  Unless he remembers how to pronounce Vulcan.”

“Vulcan?”

“One of the other doctors on the base is Vulcan and has a daughter Wesley’ age.  We take turns looking after the children.  Naturally, T’sal feeds her child Vulcan dishes, and Wesley eats them with no complaints.”

“Hmm, better go see what he’s up to.” 

Wesley was trying to order spaghetti, but since he pronounced it ‘basketti’, the replicator kept telling him “unable to comply” . 

“Beverly, is your replicator rigged to understand Wesley?”  She nodded.  “One of the engineers said there’s a setting that allows it to understand children and accents.  We also have ours set to dispense child sized portions when Wesley speaks to it.” 

“Ah.  I’ll see what I can do.”  Jean-Luc fiddled with some of the settings on the replicator. “Ok, Wes. Ask it for your meal now.”

“Compooter.  Basketti with meatballs and parm-zahn cheese.  An chocolate milk.”  The replicator whirled and Wesley was rewarded with a large plate full of spaghetti and meat balls and a tall glass of milk.  Wesley frowned. “That’s too much!” 

“Hmm.  How about you bring this plate to your mother, and I’ll ask the replicator for a smaller portion for you.”

“Ok.”

After replicating a child’s portion as well as a portion for himself, Jean-Luc settled himself at the table.  He replicated a bottle of wine for him and Beverly.  It wouldn’t be up to his usual standards, but it would do the trick.  Beverly laughed. “Should have brought some along.”

“Hmm. Well, there’s plenty in my quarters on the _Stargazer_.”

“Speaking of the _Stargazer_ , where will Wes and I sleep? Jack’s quarters were always pretty small.”  Jean-Luc thought about it.  “Well, there is the second sleeping area in my cabin.  The previous captain had two children and I’ve never done anything with it, so there’s still a pair of bunk beds in it.”

“Jean-Luc, I’m not sleeping in a bunk bed for six weeks.  I might as well have stayed in the shuttle!”

“You can have my bed.”  Beverly raised her eyebrows.  “Where would you sleep?”

“Either in the other bunk with Wes, or in Jack’s quarters.  Really, it’s no problem.”  Under the table, Beverly slid her leg up Jean-Luc’s.  “Hmm. We’ll discuss it later.” 

“Indeed.”

“Right, Wes. You haven’t had a bath in a week, and I don’t think your uncle has a bathtub in his quarters-“

“I do.”

“You do? Jack doesn’t have one.”

“Jack’s not the Captain.”

“Ah, must be good to be the Captain.  Fine, Wes. You’re off the hook for bathing tonight.  But tomorrow night, you’re having a bath.”

Wesley grumbled.  “No grumbling, Cadet.  Or tomorrow I won’t let you help with landing the shuttle on the _Stargazer_.” 

“Ooh, can I?”  He looked over at Beverly, who exchanged a look with Jean-Luc. “If you behave yourself and get ready for bed.” 

“Ok!”  Wesley dashed behind the curtain and the adults could hear him hastily flinging off his clothing and putting on his pyjamas.  “I’m ready!”  Beverly and Jean-Luc exchanged grins and entered the sleeping area.  Wesley was already under the covers, his stuffed bunny in one hand, and a book in the other.  “Uncle Jawn Loo, will you read to me again? I liked it when you read last night.”

“Uhh....sure.”  Jean-Luc toed off his boots before crawling over Wesley to press against the bulkhead. “Beverly, are you joining us for story time?  You complained last night you didn’t get one...”  Jean-Luc winked at Beverly.  She climbed into the small bunk on Wesley’s other side and wrapped an arm around her son. “We’re ready for our bedtime story.”

Jean-Luc read until Wesley’s eyes were heavy and he was nearly asleep.  Another careful extraction and the lights were dimmed for the boy to sleep.  Beverly and Jean-Luc retreated back into the area Beverly dubbed the lounge and sat on the sofa together. Beverly curled her legs under her and leaned into Jean-Luc’s shoulder, while he placed an arm around her.  Beverly sighed contentedly. 

“This is nice.” Jean-Luc leaned down and kissed the top of her head. “Indeed.  But Beverly...do we need to talk?”

“Talk?”

“About this morning?  About this? Us?  _Is_ there an us?”  Beverly laced her fingers through his. “There’s a maybe an us?  Jean-Luc...I don’t know what to say right now.  Jack...what if he doesn’t recover?”

“I don’t know, Beverly.  Do you want this?” Beverly smirked. “I thought that was obvious this morning.”  Beverly looked down at their entwined hands.  “Jean-Luc,  it wasn’t just sex this morning if that’s what you’re asking.”

“No, I didn’t think it would be.  Not with you.”  Beverly tilted her head up to look at Jean-Luc.  Jean-Luc leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips.  “Whatever you want, Beverly,  I will do my best...”

“I don’t know. I thought this morning was pretty good.”

“ _Beverly!_ ”  Beverly cheekily grinned and sat up to straddle Jean-Luc’s lap.  Her skirt rode up and Jean-Luc placed his hands on her thighs to steady her.  She leaned in and kissed him deeply and poured her unspoken words of love into the kiss.  For she knew she loved Jean-Luc.  She just wasn’t sure what she was going to do about it. 

They made love on the sofa.  Jean-Luc groaned afterwards. “One of these days, Beverly, we are going to use a proper bed.” 

“Oh, I don’t know...this is kind of nice...”  They were laying naked, legs entwined on the narrow sofa.  Beverly had her head resting on Jean-Luc’s chest and she was listening to the steady thump of his artificial heart.  She placed a hand over his heart and traced the barely there scar.  “Was it...awful?”

“Was what awful?”

“Waking up and being told you had an artificial heart.”  He covered her hand with his.  “It was frightening.  My friends had deployed with their ships, I didn’t even know if they had informed Maman or Father...and there I was, alone, laying on a biobed with a strange piece of metal in my chest where my heart used to be.  I....”  he trailed off. 

“You what?”

“Beverly, I...I thought I would never be able to love without my heart.”

“Is that why you never...”  Jean-Luc nodded.  Beverly leaned up on her elbow and gave him a kiss.

“So can you?”

“Can I what?”

“Love?”  He captured her lips in a kiss.  “What do you think?”

This time, their love making was slow.  While the first two times had been fast and furious, this time they each took time to lavish attention on the other. Jean-Luc was drifting off into a sea of bliss when they were interrupted by a piercing shriek and a cry of “Mommy!! Uncle Jawn Loo!! DADDY!!” 

They sprang apart and Beverly reached for the first item of clothing she could find – Jean-Luc’s jacket - and shoved it on.  She hurried into the sleeping area and Jean-Luc took an extra minute to replicate some pyjamas  before entering the small cabin.  Beverly was bent over Wesley smoothing out the hair plastered to his forehead and Wesley was sobbing.  Jean-Luc passed Beverly the T-shirt he had carried in and she concealed herself behind Jean-Luc and quickly shoved it on under Jean-Luc’s jacket. 

Jean-Luc knelt by the bed. “Wes...Mommy and I are here...what’s wrong?”  Wesley sniffed and held out his arms to Jean-Luc.  Jean-Luc shrugged at Beverly and gathered the boy in his arms and let him sob into his bare shoulder.  “Daddy... _hic.._.Daddy was gone... _hic._..an you were gone... _hic.._.and Mommy was gone....an... _hic._..I was all alone!”  Wesley wailed.   Jean-Luc patted Wesley’s back while Beverly rooted in her pack for a pair of knickers.  She slid them on and got into the bed with Wesley.  Jean-Luc tried to pass Wesley to her, but Wesley clung to him.  “Uncle Jawn Loo, don’t leave me!” 

Jean-Luc dropped a kiss on the boy’s head. “Wesley, I promise.  I will never leave you.”  He locked eyes with Beverly and conveyed to her his words applied to her too. 

“I want to sleep with you and Mommy tonight.” 

“Wes, the bed is too small for the three of us.  What if Uncle Jean-Luc sleeps in the other bed and I sleep in this bed with you?”  Wesley shook his head at his mother. 

Jean-Luc frowned, and then got an idea.  “I have an idea.  Wesley, will you go with your mother into the lounge while I get the room ready? And then we all can share a bed together, alright?”  Wesley nodded and reluctantly let go of Jean-Luc’s neck.  “Beverly, ask the replicator for Picard drink number 8.  It’s Aunt Adele’s special milk.  I gave some to Wesley last night.”

“Special?”

“It’s only nutmeg.”  Beverly nodded and carried her son out of the room.  Jean-Luc busied himself pulling the mattresses off both bunks and laid them on the floor between the bunks. Then, he piled on the blankets and pillows.  “You can come back in now, Wesley.” 

Beverly peered around the curtain first and laughed. “We’re going to sleep on the floor?”

“It was the only way to make a wide enough bed for all three of us.” 

“Very resourceful.”  She kissed his cheek. “Thank you, you didn’t have to.”

“Yes I did.  Wesley’s nightmare....I caused it.   It’s the least I can do.”

“Jean-Luc. You didn’t cause Jack’s accident. Did you force him to go outside?”

“Well, no....”

“Did you know the nacelle was going to blow up?”

“Well...yes, we did.”

“But Jack knew too.  He knew the risks.  We talked about the risks of both of us being in Starfleet.  This wasn’t your fault.  Please.”  Beverly passed him a mug of milk.  He raised his eyebrows.  “Thought you could do with some of Aunt Adele’s medicine, too.” 

Wesley snuggled down under the blankets sandwiched between Beverly and Jean-Luc, and when Jean-Luc woke up,  Wesley was clinging to his neck once again. 


	3. Chapter 3

Wesley helped Jean-Luc land the shuttle in the shuttle  bay aboard the _Stargazer_ and bounded out of the shuttle.  “Can I go see Daddy now?”

Jean-Luc exchanged a look with Beverly.  He had told her what Jack had looked like when he last saw him, and Beverly wasn’t sure if she wanted Wesley to see his father like that.  Jean-Luc bent down to Wesley’s height.  “How about we get you settled into my quarters first and let your Mommy check with Doctor Greyhorse?”

Wesley frowned, but knew not to argue with his uncle. “I guess.”  Ben Zoma raised his eyebrows at his Captain.  “Your quarters, sir?  I assumed they would be using Jack’s...”

“Beverly didn’t think Jack’s quarters would be large enough for them.”  He levelled a gaze at his First Officer.  Ben Zoma backed down. “Of course, Sir.” 

Beverly cautiously approached Sickbay.  She hadn’t wanted to be here alone, but she had wanted to see Jack before she let Wesley in, and someone had to look after him. Beverly was surprised when she felt a hand on her elbow and an arm wrap around her waist.  “Who’s looking after Wes?”

“Vigo is teaching him how to play that game of his called sharash’di....I didn’t think you should go in alone.”  Beverly leaned back against Jean-Luc. “Thank you.” 

Jean-Luc nodded towards his CMO, who came over. “Beverly, it’s so good to see you again, though I’m sad it’s under these circumstances.” Beverly held out her hand to her old teacher. “Carter.  I’ve been reading over your notes and forwarded them to Dalen.  But I’m as baffled as you.” 

“Would you like to see him?  Where’s Wes?”

“Yes, please.  Jean-Luc said Vigo is teaching him sharash’di? No doubt he’ll learn how to beat him in about 20 minutes.”  Dr Greyhorse chuckled.  “Jack was...is...pretty good at thrashing Vigo at it, so if his son is any good, he’ll wipe the deck with him.”  He led them towards the back of the small sickbay.  “Not a lot of room in here, but I turned the quarantine room into a bit of a private area.  I didn’t want Jack to be on display.”

“Thank you, Carter.  That was very thoughtful of you.”  Beverly gripped Jean-Luc’s hand as she entered the room and let out a gasp.  Tears leaked out of her eyes and she turned back to Jean-Luc and buried her head in his shoulder.  Jean-Luc rubbed her back and indicated for his CMO to leave them alone for a few minutes.  He gently wiped her tears away.  “Shh. I’ve sent Greyhorse away. It’s just you, me, and Jack.  Do you want me to leave?”  Beverly shook her head.  “I can’t...”

“Beverly, you’re a doctor. You’ve seen people who are worse off than Jack.”

“Yes, but they weren’t the father of my son!”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows at the fact that Beverly hadn’t called Jack her husband, only the father of Wesley.  “I know.  But Jack needs you.” 

“I can’t let Wesley see his father like this.  It’s going to upset him so much not to see him, but it’s going to upset him more if he does see him.  What do I do?” 

“Beverly, Wesley needs to see his father.  We can have one of the nurses give him a sponge bath and see if any of the tubes can be moved so Wes can see him.  But Wesley needs to see him.  You know that.”

“I....”  Beverly leaned up and pressed a kiss to Jean-Luc’s cheek.  “Of course, you’re right.”  Beverly reluctantly let go of Jean-Luc and moved over to the bed.  She picked up Jack’s hand and started viewing the read-outs on the screen below.  Beverly frowned.  “The read outs indicate he has a very low level of brain activity.”

“I’m sorry, Beverly, what does that mean?”

“Jean-Luc, Jack is barely alive.  His brain is...not even half functioning.  The good news is, it looks like his heart has improved and he’s been taken off the heart machine.”  Jean-Luc shuddered, remembering the awful machine he had to endure when he had his heart replaced.  Beverly continued to study the readouts. “But his lungs haven’t recovered, and he sustained damage to his liver, his kidneys....Jean-Luc, nearly every organ in his body suffered due to oxygen deprivation.  How long was he out there for?”

“After the blast, I was outside within minutes.  I’m sure it must not have been more than ten?”  Jean-Luc looked up at the ceiling. “Picard to Ben Zoma.”

“ _Sir?”_

“Number One, do you have exact numbers from the time of the blast until Jack was brought inside?”

_“I’ll check.”_

“Thank you.  I’m in Sickbay with Beverly. Could you bring us the report? Beverly would like to see it.”

_“Of course, Sir. Ben Zoma out.”_

Beverly smiled at Jean-Luc. “Thank you.”

Jean-Luc took up a position on Jack’s other side and reached for Jack’s hand and gave it a squeeze.  “Jack, I brought Beverly to see you.  Wesley’s here too, though Vigo is currently teaching him sharash’di.  Doctor Greyhorse and I are sure Wes will follow in your footsteps and wipe the deck with him.  But I’ll bring Wesley to see you soon...” he trailed off and sheepishly smiled at Beverly.  “When I visit Jack....I’ve been talking to him.  I remember reading once that you should talk to patients in a coma?”  Beverly nodded.  “It can help to rouse them when they hear a familiar voice.  But Jack....he might be gone, Jean-Luc.”

“Gone?”

“His mind, who he is...if he recovers, he might not be the same Jack we know and...”

“Love.  You can say it, Beverly.  I know you love Jack.  I love him too.”

“I....”  Beverly looked down.  She _did_ love Jack, but she had feelings for her best friend, too.  And she needed something Jack couldn’t give her.  Beverly looked up when someone cleared their throat in the doorway. 

“Ah, Number One. Thank you.”  Jean-Luc took the PADD from Ben Zoma and passed it over to Beverly.  “That should be all the details. “ Ben Zoma looked over at his friend on the bed and glanced between Jean-Luc and Beverly. “Any change?”  Beverly shook her head. “At least, I don’t think so.  Not since you sent me Carter’s notes. Well, other than being taken off the heart machine.”

“That’s good, right?”

“Hmm. We’ll see.”  Jean-Luc frowned. Beverly didn’t seem hopeful at all.  Was his friend doomed to die or be a vegetable for the rest of his life?  What about Beverly and Wesley?  How would they cope...and where did Jean-Luc fit in?  He loved Beverly and loved Wesley as if he was his own...but if there was a chance Jack would recover...he just didn’t know what to do. 

Beverly gravitated back over towards Jean-Luc and leaned against him, so he wrapped his free arm around her and Ben Zoma shot him a look.  _Later_ , Jean-Luc mouthed to his friend and First Officer. Ben Zoma nodded. “If that’s all, Captain?”

“For now...Number One, I’d like to be able to give Beverly as much time as she needs here, so that will mean I will need to look after Wesley for her...can you handle things on the  Bridge until we get to Starbase Thirty-Two?”  Ben Zoma nodded.  “Thank you, Number One.” 

When Gilaad retreated from the room, Jean-Luc pressed a kiss to the top of Beverly’s head.  “Are you ok?”

“No.  Jean-Luc...it really doesn’t look hopeful for Jack.”  Jean-Luc’s face fell.  “Are you sure?”

“Jean-Luc,  I’ve looked at all of Carter’s notes.  Dalen would have to pull off a miracle and frankly, I don’t think it’s possible.”

“It’s your decision.  Both as a doctor and as his spouse.  You’re the only one who has the ability....to....to...”  Jean-Luc couldn’t get the words out.

“Pull the plug?”  Jean-Luc nodded.

“When we get back to Starbase Thirty-two, I have to check Jack’s living will and see what his wishes are.  I should have looked earlier but I didn’t...I didn’t want to think about it.” 

“Should I get a nurse in to clean him up so Wesley can see him?”

“I still don’t _want_ Wes to see his father like this, but I think he has to...”  Jean-Luc gave her shoulders a squeeze before leaving her alone in the room with her husband while he fetched a nurse. Jack would receive a sponge bath and a fresh hospital gown as well as have all his bandages and tubes changed before Wesley came in.  When Jean-Luc re-entered the room, Beverly was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room weeping.  He went and knelt down in front of her and took her hands in his.  “Beverly, we’ll get through this.  Whatever you need...you know I’m here for you.”  Beverly nodded.  “Take me...take me to your quarters. “  He nodded.  To the nurse he said, “Please call me when Jack is ready to see his son.  Wesley is five.  We don’t want him scared of his own father.”  The nurse nodded at the Captain and watched the couple leave, with the woman – Jack’s wife, as far as she knew – wrapped in the Captain’s arms.  There has to be a story there.  She couldn’t wait to tell her roommate what she witnessed.

###

The door to Jean-Luc’s quarters had barely closed on them before Beverly was tugging at Jean-Luc’s uniform, ripping off a button in the process.  Jean-Luc caught her hands in his. “Hey...slow down...what’s the rush?”

“I need...”

“What do you need, my love?”

“You.  I need you.  Jean-Luc...please?”  She kissed him desperately.  “Beverly...”

“Please?  Don’t make me beg.  Jean-Luc, I need this...I need you...I need to feel something...”  Jean-Luc gently kissed her back.  “Well, at least this time we have a bed.”  He gently removed her clothes and his own before lying down on the bed with her.  Beverly rolled onto him and frantically began kissing him and running her hands over his body as the tears were pouring out of her eyes.  He brushed them away.  “Shh, my love...please don’t cry...” 

Beverly surprised Jean-Luc by positioning herself on top of him and lowering herself down.  His eyes rolled into the back of his head as he let Beverly set the frantic pace.  He would make leisurely love to her later, but right now, she needed this release.  He reached up for her breasts and twisted her nipples in his fingers as she arched her back and slammed down on top of him again and again.  Beverly took one of his hands and guided it down between them and Jean-Luc quickly found her nub and stroked it until Beverly was crying out his name over and over as first hers, than his orgasm ripped through them. 

Beverly collapsed on top of him and kissed him passionately before slowly rolling off of him.  Jean-Luc held her while she cried, occasionally meeting her lips in a kiss.  Jean-Luc ran his hands over her body and softly caressed her.  He gently inserted a finger between her folds and slowly moved.  He curled his finger to reach that mystery spot and Beverly cried out.  Jean-Luc let his fingers slowly make love to her and she clung to him gasping and begging for more. 

They were interrupted by the beep of Jean-Luc’s communicator.

 _“Vigo to Captain Picard.”_ Jean-Luc groaned.

“Picard here.”

_“Sir, Wesley wanted to know where you and his mother were, and since Beverly isn’t on the comm system yet, I paged you.”_

“Of course. Are you still in the lounge with him?”

_“Yes, Sir.”_

“I’ll come get him in ten minutes.  Picard out.”  Jean-Luc pressed a kiss to Beverly’s lips.  “I’m going to go fetch Wes. I think he’s finally beaten Vigo at his game. “  Beverly gave a watery smile.  “That’s my boy.” Beverly wiped at the tears drying on her face.  “I had better take a shower before I see Wes or he’ll worry.”  Jean-Luc pretended to pout.  “I had so hoped to shower with you again.”  Beverly gave a genuine smile and sucked on Jean-Luc’s lower lip, making him groan.  “Later.”

“Beverly, you will be the death of me. “  Beverly’s eyes twinkled. “How big is your bathtub?”  Jean-Luc’s eyes went wide.  “Err...I never checked?” 

“We’ll find out after Wesley goes to bed tonight...” 

“Is that so?”

“Yep.”  Beverly kissed him again.  “Now go.  Get a quick shower and then get my son.”

“You sure you don’t want to shower with me?”  Jean-Luc wiggled his eyebrows.  Beverly rolled her eyes. “Yes.  You’ll be more than ten minutes if I do.”

###

While Jean-Luc was rescuing Vigo from the inquisitive Wesley, he received a call from Sickbay.  Jack had been cleaned up and they had managed to tuck away some of the tubing so Wesley could come see his father.  Wesley and Jean-Luc entered his quarters and found Beverly casually reading a book and drinking a cup of tea.  “Mommy, I beat Vigo twice!!”

“Good job, Wesley.”  Jean-Luc gave Beverly a kiss on the cheek and whispered “Jack is cleaned up for Wes to go...do you want me to take him alone?”Beverly shook her head and rose. “Wesley, would you like to go see Daddy now?”  Wesley nodded.  Beverly took a deep breath and held out her hand to Wesley, and clutched Jean-Luc’s in her other hand.  It was going to be a long afternoon. 

When they entered Sickbay,  Wesley flinched when he saw all the tubing that was still visible.  He hid behind Beverly and Jean-Luc.  Beverly turned around and knelt by her son. “Don’t you want to see Daddy?”

“He looks scary.”  Jean-Luc knelt down next to Beverly.  “It’s not scary.  I bet your mommy can tell you what everything does. It’s all there to help him get better. Come on, You can hold my hand while you see him and if you want to leave, we’ll go, alright?”  Wesley nodded and clutched Jean-Luc’s hand.  He pointed at a tube going out of his father’s nose. “What’s that?”

“That’s a tube to help him breathe.”  Wesley pointed at another tube, sticking out halfway down Jacks body.  “What’s that?”

“While Daddy is in Sickbay, he can’t get up and go pee when he has to, so that’s how Daddy goes potty.”  Wesley wrinkled his nose.  “Into a tube?”  Beverly nodded. “Ewww.”   Wesley continued to point at everything  and once  Beverly explained what it was for, Wesley became more comfortable.  “Can I touch Daddy?”

“You can hold his hand if you want.  Tell him you’re here.”  Jean-Luc let go of Wesley’s hand so he could hold onto Jack’s. “It’s cold.  I don’t like it.”  Wesley snatched his hand back and gripped Jean-Luc once more.  “Mommy, how much longer will Daddy be asleep?”

“We...we don’t know.”  Wesley sniffed.  “Mommy, what if I yell really loud in his ear?”  Beverly smiled.  “You can try, my little love, but I don’t think it will work.” 

“Why?”  Beverly searched her mind for easy words to explain to her son. “Well, you know what happens when you breath?”

“Uh-huh.  Air goes in and out. An when I run it goes in an out faster.”

“That’s right. And what happens if you hold your breath too long?”

“I get dizzy.”

“Well, Daddy had to hold his breath for a really long time and he got so dizzy it made him fall asleep.”

“Is zat when he saved the ‘ _gazer_?”

Jean-Luc nodded.  “That’s right, Wes.  Your Daddy had to hold his breath when he saved the ship.  He was very brave.”  Wesley clung to Jean-Luc tighter.  “Can we leave now?  I don’t like it here.”  Jean-Luc chuckled. “No one likes Sickbay, Wes.”  Beverly pretended to look offended.  “The doctors aren’t bad, though.”

###

Beverly gave Wesley his bath that night and Jean-Luc read him a story once more.  “Uncle Jawn Loo, if Daddy doesn’t wake up, will you be my Daddy instead?”  Jean-Luc glanced at the door and wondered if Beverly had heard her son before answering. “Wesley,  no matter what happens, I am always here for you.  I love you and your mommy very much.” 

“I love you too, Uncle Jawn Loo.”  Jean-Luc leaned down and kissed Wesley’s forehead.  “Goodnight, Wes. If you need us, we’re just on the other side of this door.”

“Okay. Night Uncle Jawn Loo.”  Jean-Luc let the door slide shut behind him and let out the breath he didn’t know he had been holding.  He didn’t know what the future held for Jack...for him and Beverly...for Wesley, but he knew he would never abandon Beverly and Wesley. Even if this was only a fling for Beverly while she worked through everything that was happening with Jack. 

Jean-Luc exited Wesley’s bedroom and heard the water in the bathroom running and grinned.  Obviously, Beverly had been serious in finding out if the bathtub would hold two.  Jean-Luc went into the bathroom and saw Beverly was already naked and in the bathtub.  “Care to join me?” 

Jean-Luc hastily removed his uniform and climbed into the bathtub and sat opposite Beverly.  “Hmm.  This will never do.”  Jean-Luc carefully tugged Beverly over to him and had her res her back against his chest.  She settled between his legs and his arms wrapped around her waist to hold her close.  He kissed the back of her neck and she sighed.  Beverly had piled her long tresses on top of her head secured with a clip to keep them out of the water, and it left her neck and shoulders exposed.  Jean-Luc moved his hands to her shoulders and began massaging her.  Beverly moaned while Jean-Luc teased out all of the tension that had been gathering between Beverly’ s shoulder blades over the course of the day.  Beverly lolled her head forward and closed her eyes.  “Your hands are amazing. Please don’t stop.”  Jean-Luc leaned forward and placed a kiss under her ear so he could whisper into her ear “I don’t intend to.” 

Beverly turned around in the bathtub so she was facing Jean-Luc and he pulled her close, pressing her breasts into his chest so he could deeply kiss her.  He tugged her hair free from the clip and ran his fingers through her hair.  Beverly had her hands on Jean-Luc’s head and gently traced his ears with her fingers, making him shudder.  He dropped his head to her shoulder. “Oh, Beverly...” 

She kissed him again, and when they broke apart, Jean-Luc suggested they move to his bed.  Beverly grinned wickedly and straddled him in the bath and guided him into her.  The water sloshed over onto the bathroom floor as they worked themselves into a frenzy in the tub, and Beverly bit into Jean-Luc’s ear as she climaxed so her cries wouldn’t echo in the tiled room. 

The water had gone cold and their fingers had wrinkled by the time they carefully stepped out of the tub, mindful of all the water they splashed around.  Jean-Luc grabbed towels for them and set the servobot to clean up the room before leading Beverly into his bedroom, where he gently laid her down on his bed and proceeded to make love to her once more.

This time, they weren’t woken up by Wesley’s cries, but by the chiming of Jean-Luc’s communicator.  He groggily opened his eyes.  “Picard here.”

“ _Sir, it’s Greyhorse.  You and Beverly might want to come down to sickbay.”_

“Jack?”

_“Yes.”_

“Give me ten minutes to get someone to stay with Wesley and we’ll be there. Picard out.”  Beverly had her eyes opened and while she was listening to the conversation, she was already out of bed and grabbing her uniform and tossing Jean-Luc his.  “Picard to Bridge.”

“ _Bridge here.”_

“Can you send someone to my quarters to look after Wesley?  Doctor Crusher and I have been called to Sickbay.”

_“Right away, Sir.”_

“Make it ten minutes.  Picard out.”  Jean-Luc shoved his legs into his trousers .”Will Wesley be okay if he wakes up and neither of us are here?”

“I don’t know, but depending on how long we are, he might still be sleeping when we get back. I don’t want to wake him to tell him we’re going in case it’s not good news.”  Jean-Luc nodded. He glanced down at their bed.  To anyone looking at it, it was quite obvious what had gone on in the bed the previous evening and Jean-Luc carefully smoothed down the sheets.  “Should I put a blanket and pillow out on the settee?”

“Why?”

“Well...I just thought you might not want anyone to know we shared a bed last night...”

“Jean-Luc, you’re the Captain.  Do you really think anyone will say anything?”

“Good point.”  The doorchime outside his quarters rang just as Jean-Luc was shoving his arms into his jacket.  His feet were still bare, but he called out “Come,” as he carried his boots into the living room.   “Ah, Ensign Yugen, I see you drew the short straw.” 

The tall blonde woman just smiled at the Captain as Beverly came out of his bedroom, fully dressed.  “Hello, I’m Doctor Crusher.” 

“Doctor, this is Ensign Yugen, one of Vigo’s men.  She’s here to keep an eye on Wesley.” 

“Thank you, Ensign.  Wesley will hopefully stay sleeping, but if he wakes up, just give him some porridge and he can play with his toys until we get back.”  Yugen nodded.  

“I hope you have someting to read, Ensign. I’m afraid this will be a boring assignment.”  Yugen brandished a PADD at her Captain. “Yes, Sir.”

“You can reach us in Sickbay if you need us.  I haven’t added Doctor Crusher to the comm yet, so you’ll have to page me.” 

“Of course, Sir.”  Jean-Luc finished tying his boots and rested a hand on Beverly’s back as he led her out of his quarters.  Ensign Yugen smirked at her departing Captain’s back as she had caught a look into the Captain’s bedroom when the door slid open and it was obvious the two had shared a bed last night.  When her roommate, a nurse down in Sickbay, told her she thought the Captain was intimate with Lieutenant Crusher’s wife, she had scoffed and told Kelly not to be silly, that the Captain would never do that...but the evidence in his bedroom proved otherwise. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Christmas! I have a few Christmas fics I want to finish and post, so this is probably the last update for Consolation until after Christmas (unless my muse can manage to find time to write in addition to all the Christmas prep stuff I have to do....)

All the colour drained from Jean-Luc’s face as he listened to his CMO.  He didn’t understand all of the terms, but he knew what the large heart machine was and knew Jack had been taken off of it yesterday, only to be put back on it in the middle of the night.  Beverly, ever the doctor, was peering at all the readouts and analysing them in her head.  Jack had gone into cardiac arrest and the only way to continue to keep him alive was to re-attach the machine that would pump his blood for him.   It was no way to live permanently, and hopefully it would once again be temporary, but Greyhorse felt as though he needed to inform Beverly as Jack’s wife and as a fellow physician immediately.  Jean-Luc thanked the man and told him he would sort out a comm badge for Beverly so Greyhorse could contact her directly.

Beverly clutched at Jean-Luc’s arm while they made their way through the corridors.  A few people stopped and greeted Jean-Luc, but they all knew the situation in Sickbay and knew the woman on his arm was the wife of their Second Officer.  Some of them had even served with Beverly, who had done a work-study program on board the _Stargazer_ for two years before she became pregnant and many wanted to offer her words of...well, no one knew exactly what to say.  Jack wasn’t dead, so you couldn’t offer condolences, but word going around the ship was that Jack Crusher was never going to make a full recovery.  Beverly accepted the kind words of her former crewmates graciously, but as she gripped Jean-Luc tighter he could tell she needed to be away from prying eyes. 

When they returned to Jean-Luc’s quarters, Ensign Yugen was reading on her PADD and Wesley was still fast asleep.  Jean-Luc thanked the Ensign, and after the Ensign gave him a very odd look, she left.  Jean-Luc soon found the reason for the funny look as it turned out Beverly’s knickers had wound up tucked into the seat cushions on the settee.  Jean-Luc hadn’t even realised they had taken their clothing off in the living area.  He shrugged and put her knickers in the laundry chute.  Might give the laundry personnel something interesting to talk about when they found a pair of women’s knickers in with the Captain’s clothing, but he was beyond caring.  If Ensign Yugen valued her position, she would not tell anyone what she found or saw in the Captain’s quarters.

Beverly unhooked her jacket and tossed it on a chair before curling up in a ball on the settee.  Jean-Luc took her jacket and his and hung them up before joining her . Beverly crawled into his lap and rested her head against his chest.  “Jean-Luc,  I can’t do this.  It would be better if Jack had died.”  Jean-Luc smoothed back Beverly’s hair and kissed her forehead. 

“Beverly, you don’t _really_  mean that.” 

“Yes, I do.  Better for Wesley to have a deceased father than the vegetable Jack has become.  If Jack was dead, I could move on with my life...free of guilt...I could...I could be with you.”

“You are with me.” 

“I’m with you now...but what do I do about Jack?  I...I care about him, but I don’t love him. Not the way I lo...care about you.”  Beverly had nearly slipped up and told Jean-Luc how she truly felt about him.  Jean-Luc tightened his grip on her with one hand and lightly ran his fingertips from her shoulder to her wrist, where he grabbed her hand and squeezed it.  “Beverly...I think it’s time we stop denying how we feel.” Beverly shifted so she was facing Jean-Luc.  She looked down at their clasped hands and with her free hand she reached up and traced Jean-Luc’s jawline. 

“I...”  She couldn’t.  She wanted to, but she couldn’t.  Could she?  What was the protocol for falling in love with your best friend while you were married to his other best friend?  Jean-Luc nuzzled against her hand on his cheek and she found her courage.  “Jean-Luc,  I’ve been in love with you for quite some time now, but never wanted to tell you because I didn’t think it was right to be in love with you and married to Jack.”

“Oh, Beverly.  I’ve been in love with you from the moment we met.”

“That long?”  Jean-Luc nodded. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“The same reason you never told me.  I didn’t want to ask you to leave Jack.”  Beverly tentatively kissed Jean-Luc.  It was a gentle kiss, a loving kiss.  A kiss full of hope for their future.  She took a deep breath.  “Jean-Luc...what are we going to do?”

“I think we need to find out if Jack is going to recover.”

“He’s not.”  Jean-Luc looked up. It wasn’t like Beverly to be so dismissive over an ill patient. 

“You don’t know that.”

“Jean-Luc, I’m a doctor. I _know_ Jack won’t recover.  At least not one hundred percent...and if it’s anything less than one hundred...I’ll look like a horrible person if I leave him!”  Beverly was unable to stop the flow of tears.  Jean-Luc merely held her and kissed her forehead.  “You’re not a horrible person.”

“I am.  I want to leave my comatose husband.”  Jean-Luc tilted her chin up so he could look at her. 

“Beverly, we can still take care of Jack.  I don’t think I could turn my back on my best friend...but I can’t let you throw away us just so you can be a devoted wife.” 

“Are you asking me to leave my husband?”

“If I asked, would you say yes?”   Beverly thought about it for less than a minute. 

“Yes.”  Jean-Luc smiled and kissed her. He let his hand slip under her camisole and he was stroking her back when the door to Wesley’s room opened.

“Mommy?  Uncle Jawn Loo?” 

“Yes, Wesley?”

“I can’t sleep.”  Beverly rolled her eyes at Jean-Luc.  Wesley had just been sleeping, and the only reason he was now awake was because he heard their voices. 

“You were just sleeping, Wes.”  Wesley padded over to the sofa, his footie pyjamas making a swish swish sound against the carpet.  “Mommy, why are you sitting on Uncle Jawn Loo’s lap?”   Jean-Luc’s face went red.  Beverly patted Jean-Luc’s warm cheek.  “Oh, I just thought it might be comfortable.  Don’t you like to sit on Uncle Jean-Luc’s lap?”  Wesley nodded and seemed to accept the answer. 

“Uncle Jawn Loo, will you read me another story?”  Jean-Luc glanced at Beverly, who nodded.

“Just one, Wes.  It’s very late, and we all need to get some sleep.”

“Okay.” Beverly detangled herself from Jean-Luc’s lap and stood.  “I think I’ll have a cup of warm milk.  Wes, should I bring you one?”  Wesley nodded and tugged on Jean-Luc’s hand.  “Don’t forget the nutmeg,”  Jean-Luc called as he allowed Wesley to drag him into the small bedroom.

Wesley had finally fallen back to sleep, and Beverly and Jean-Luc had moved to Jean-Luc’s bedroom to try to get some sleep themselves.  Jean-Luc drew Beverly into his arms.  “Get some sleep, my love.  We’ll talk more in the morning.”  Beverly’s nod turned into a yawn.  “Goodnight, Jean-Luc.” 

Wesley came in and jumped on the bed at 0600.  Beverly and Jean-Luc had only been asleep for three hours, four tops, in addition to the few hours they had slept before being paged to Sickbay.  Suffice it to say, they were both feeling a bit groggy and having a five-year-old jump on you in bed did nothing to improve your moods. 

“Can we go exploring Uncle Jawn Loo?”  Jean-Luc opened one eye and glanced at the wide-eyed boy who had jumped on his stomach.  “Wes,  I need some coffee first.” 

“I can gets it!”  Wesley jumped off the bed and headed for Jean-Luc’s replicator.  Jean-Luc turned and Beverly gave him a light kiss. “Good morning. Welcome to life with a five-year-old.”  Jean-Luc groaned.  “Is he like this every morning?”

“Yep.”

“Hmm.  I daresay it’s too late for me, I’m madly in love with his mother.”  Beverly grinned and stretched.  “I love you too.  Can I borrow your dressing gown?  I didn’t pack one.”

“We could replicate you one.”

“I know, but I want to wear yours.”  Jean-Luc shrugged and got out of bed to get his dressing gown off the door hook for Beverly.  Jean-Luc found his slippers and slowly moved out into the living area.  Wesley was trying to order coffee, again. 

“Wes, I have to program the replicator to respond to you first.”  Jean-Luc pressed buttons on the console. “Now try.”

“Compooter: Cawfee, Bwack.”  When the cup emerged, Jean-Luc took it gratefully and drank half of it in one sip. “Thank you, Wes.  Should we get a cup for your mother and some milk and porridge for you?” 

When Jean-Luc brought Beverly her coffee, he looked longingly at the bed.  He wanted nothing more than to get back in bed with Beverly, close and lock the door, and not come out for the rest of the day...maybe week.  Jean-Luc decided that once the situation with Jack was stable, he would take Beverly away for a short holiday.  Of course, this meant finding someone to look after Wesley, but he thought he might be able to convince his sister-in-law to look after the boy.  Beverly noticed the look Jean-Luc was giving her.

“Something on your mind, Jean-Luc?”

“Just thinking how delicious you look in my bed.  How glad I am that we are together now.”

“Me too.”   Jean-Luc smiled.  “Wes wants to ‘go exploring’ today.”  Beverly shook her head. “After he does some schoolwork.” 

“I’ll break the news to him.  You go ahead and shower.”

When Beverly emerged in a fresh uniform,  Wesley was seated at the small table with a bowl of porridge and a glass of milk.  Wesley had a PADD propped up in front of him and he was watching an animated holovid. 

“PADDs at the breakfast table?”  Wesley slid the PADD over to Beverly. “Sowee, Mommy.” 

“Sorry, Love.  Wesley asked if he could watch holocartoons.”  Beverly sternly looked at her son.  “Wesley!  You shouldn’t ask Jean-Luc for things you know are against the rules.”

“Uh-oh. Wesley, am I in trouble?”  Jean-Luc pretended to look worried.  Wesley giggled.  “Mommy’s gonna punish you for breakin’ the rules.”  Jean-Luc wiggled his eyebrows at Beverly.  “Oh, is she?” Beverly laughed and swatted at Jean-Luc’ arm.  “Finish your porridge, young man.” 

“Yes, Mommy,”  Jean-Luc grinned at Beverly and pretended to meekly eat his breakfast. Beverly sighed.  “Do I have one child or two?” 

“I would’t mind another...”  Beverly nearly dropped her coffee.

“Another what, Uncle Jawn Loo?”

“Uh...cup of coffee, Wes.  I’m going to get another cup of coffee.”

###

Ensign Yugen paused outside of Commander Ben Zoma’s small office before ringing the chime.  Gilaad looked up when the door opened.  “Ah, Ensig Yugen, what can I do for you?”

“Sir, I’d like to request a transfer of quarters.” 

“Oh?  Is something wrong with yours?”  Abigail Yugen fidgeted in front of the Commander.  “Not with the room...but it’s my roommate,  Kelly.”

“Please, have a seat. Tell me what’s wrong.  If you need a mediator to resolve a problem we can find one...”

“No, Sir.  It’s not a problem. Well, it is...but it’s not...solvable?”   Ben Zoma leaned back in his chair. “Why don’t you start at the beginning, Ensign.” 

“Two weeks ago Lieutenant Vigo asked me if I would mind looking after Doctor Crusher’s son when she and the Captain were summoned to Sickbay in the middle of the night.”  Ben Zoma nodded, he remembered that night well.  Unfortunately, it had been the beginning of Jack Crusher’s downhill turn, but they were still moving towards Starbase 32 as quickly as possible.  Abigail continued.  “I didn’t have to do much. Wesley stayed sleeping, so I just sat on the sofa in the Captain’s quarters and read.” 

“That’s understandable, Ensign.  You won’t be in trouble for that.”

“Thank you, Sir.  I didn’t look around the Captain’s quarters, not even to find the toilet.  I respect the Captain’s privacy too much.” 

“I’m glad to hear it.”  Abigail sighed, afraid to continue.  “Ensign Yugen, please tell me what is bothering you.”

“When I returned to my quarters after my shift, Kelly badgered me for details about the Captain’s personal life.  She had seen him and Doctor Crusher in Sickbay visiting Commander Crusher and I guess she thought they were more than friends, because when she came off her shift, she told me she saw the Captain put his arms around her. I told her I knew the Captain was friends with Commander Crusher, so it made sense he would have been friends with Doctor Crusher and he was probably giving her support.  I...I’m not married, Sir, but I think if I was and my husband was very ill, I would need my friends to support me.” 

“Yes, well thank you for bringing this to my attention.  I fear I may have to get the Captain involved...Do you still want to be assigned to the Captain and Doctor?” Before she joined Starfleet,  Abigail  had trained to be a teacher.  In fact, it had been her first teaching assignment on Starbase 56 where she had decided to join Starfleet instead.  Due to her experience with children,  she had been assigned to tutor the five-year-old and to fill in as a babysitter when both the Captain and Doctor were needed elsewhere.  It was working out for her as she really enjoyed teaching, and Wesley was a smart kid.  She shook her head. “Please don’t, sir.  I like Wesley and Doctor Crusher a lot and I’ve really missed teaching.  I know it’s only temporary until we reach starbase thirty-two, but please don’t reassign me.” 

“Of course not, Ensign.  But I will see to getting you assigned new quarters.  There are some empty singles in the same corridor as the Captain.  Perhaps we could move you there to be closer in case you are needed again in an emergency to look after Wesley.  You could then choose to stay in your single once we reach the base, or try to return to your shared quarters.”

“Oh, thank you, Sir.” 

“No, Ensign.  Thank you for respecting the Captain’s privacy. I will make sure he is aware of your loyalties.”  Abigail smiled.  Maybe she might even get a promotion out of this! 

“Of course, Sir.”

“You may return to your post.  I will send you information on your new quarters by the end of the day.”  Abigail nodded and rose.  When the door slid shut behind her, Ben Zoma rested his head in his hands.  “Ben Zoma to Picard.”

_“Picard here. Gilaad, what can I do for you?”_

“Sir, are you busy?”

“ _Not at all.  Beverly is reviewing some of Jack’s recent tests and I’m entertaining Wes.  I can call for Ensign Yugen if you need me.”_

“Sir, might I come see you?” 

“ _Of course, Gilaad.  We’re in the gymnasium.”_

“Thank you, Sir.  Ben Zoma out.”

When Gilaad entered the gymnasium, he did a double take.  His Captain was holding onto Wesley’s waist as the boy walked along a balance beam.  He lifted Wesley off the beam when he saw Gilaad.  “Ah, Number One. What can I do for you?”

“Hi Mister Gilaad!”

“Hello, Sir. Hello, Wesley. Captain, can I talk to you?”  Jean-Luc leaned down to Wesley’s height. “Wes, I need to talk to Mister Gilaad for a few minutes.  How about you practice your tumbling and we’ll watch you while we talk?”

“Ok, Uncle Jawn Loo!”  Wesley ran over to the mats and began performing somersaults and lopsided cartwheels.  “ I’m assuming you didn’t want Wesley to listen.”

“No, Sir.  Sir, I just had Ensign Yugen in my office.”

“Oh? Is she alright? Wesley hasn’t burnt her out already, has he?  I know he’s very inquisitive...”

“Ah, no. She is enjoying working with Wesley.  She actually came to request a change in quarters.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.   His junior level officers knew that they would have to live with a roommate and if they didn’t get along, they would have to work it out on their own.  Changing quarters was usually only reserved if your promotion came with  larger or private  quarters.  “Her roommate is a nurse in Sickbay and she has been asking Ensign Yugen...questions.”

“Questions?”

“Questions about you...and Beverly.”  Jean-Luc frowned.  “What kind of questions?”

“Nurse Mandilay seems to think there is something more than friendship between you and Beverly.  Of course, that can’t be right, can it, Sir.”  Jean-Luc shifted uncomfortably.  “Gilaad,  I’m not going to discuss my personal life.  Especially not in a public place. But what does this have to do with Yugen?”

“It seems Mandilay has been pestering her for details about you and Beverly.”

“I see. And what does Yugen tell her?”

“Nothing, Sir.  Yugen told her she respected your privacy and told her she only knew you and Beverly were probably friends because of you being close to Jack.”

“A wise answer.  I ought to give that girl a promotion.”  Gilaad grinned.  “I’ll be assigning her to her own quarters closer to yours so she can be at your cabin quicker if there is an emergency.” 

“Good thinking, Gilaad. And thank you for bringing this to my attention.  I think you had better call Nurse Madilay into your office and have a discussion with her about proper decorum.  Put her on report.  And speak to Greyhorse about having her assigned away from Jack. “

“Of course, Sir.”  Over on the mats, Wesley fell over attempting to do a flip and let out a small cry.  Jean-Luc hurried over to the boy, and Gilaad observed how fatherly Jean-Luc treated the boy.  Of course, it was natural that Jean-Luc would be close to the son of his best friend, but Gilaad couldn’t help but wonder if Jean-Luc wasn’t a little _too close_ , and his mouth dropped open when he observed Jean-Luc dip his head to the boy’s injured knee to press a gentle kiss on the scrape.

Gilaad respected the Captain’s privacy, but he wondered how many more crew members like Mandilay were out there.   


	5. Chapter 5

Jack’s condition deteriorated as the weeks went on, and they were still at least one week away from Starbase 32. Everytime Beverly would visit Sickbay, she would return with no good news and it had gotten to the point where Beverly refused to visit Jack in Sickbay, but would still pour over the medical reports from the small desk in Jean-Luc’s cabin trying to find something that Carter Greyhorse hadn’t yet.  She spent hours on conference calls with her mentor, Dalen Quaice, who would take over Jack’s care once they reached the base.  Beverly was convinced that her husband was brain dead, but she couldn’t make any decisions until she consulted his living will.  She heaved a frustrated sigh and tossed the PADD she had been studying against the wall.  It hit the wall with a loud thud and slid to the floor, surprisingly still in one piece. 

“Bev?  What’s wrong?”  Jean-Luc cautiously approached his lover and she folded herself into his arms.  “The reports are all the same.  All Carter can do is make Jack comfortable and I’m just so frustrated, Jean-Luc!”  He smoothed down her hair and guided her away from the desk and over to the settee.  Once they were seated, he pulled her into his lap.  “I know, my love. I know.  I want Jack to improve.” Beverly looked up.

“Do you?”

“Of course I do, don’t you?” Beverly shook her head.  “I don’t know.  The longer he’s unconscious and unable to breathe for himself, the worse the damage is going to be.  He was without oxygen to his brain for over twenty minutes after the accident...trust me, that’s not a good thing.” 

“I’m sorry, Beverly, I took the basic field first aid class, but all of this is beyond my knowledge.”

“After twenty minutes, a brain will suffer catastrophic damage with no oxygen.  In fact, the brain starts to die after only  six minutes.  The report says that the explosion happened fifteen minutes before you pulled Jack inside, and it had been another six before he was brought into sickbay...and that’s only if the crack in his helmet happened as a result of the blast.  It’s possible the crack happened earlier.”  Jean-Luc gasped and his eyes bulged out.  “What’s wrong?”

“Beverly...my heart...when I was stabbed....”  Beverly rested her hand over Jean-Luc’s chest.  “I read your file.  Since you were treated within minutes, you sustained minimal damage.  They took good care of you.” 

“I’m sorry I couldn’t take good care of Jack.”  Beverly leaned up and kissed Jean-Luc’s cheek.  “I don’t blame you for Jack’s accident. Honestly, Jean-Luc, you know Jack. He was always pretty reckless. We may never know his motivations for volunteering for the job.”  Jean-Luc smiled remembering some of Jack’s previous antics.  “True...so what options are we looking at?”

Beverly took a deep breath.  “If Jack stated that he doesn’t want to be kept alive, the decision is easy.  We remove all the machines and let him go naturally.  But if he didn’t give any directions...we have to decide.  Well, _I_   have to decide, but I wouldn’t do it without your input.  And...Jack’s parents. Have you contacted them yet?”

“No.  Do you want me to?” 

“It might be easier if you do...they technically don’t get any say in Jack’s treatment, but I still would like them to be informed.”  Jean-Luc nodded. “I’ll do that today.” 

“I’m surprised Jack’s Starfleet file doesn’t have his living will in it...what would happen if you had been unable to conact me to locate it?”

“You know, I don’t know.  I always assumed everything like that was filed.  I know on my file it lists everything for me...but I suppose I’ve already had my heart replaced, so perhaps my situation is different.  And my only family is Robert...and there was no way I was letting _him_ make any decisions about my life!”  Beverly frowned. “Still not speaking with him? How long ago did your father pass away?”

“Three years. I get correspondence from Robert’s wife, though, and she’s the one who keeps me stocked with wine from the vineyard. Come to think of it, I probably should contact the bank and change...some things.”  Beverly nodded and decided not to press him any further, so she changed the subject.

“It’s awful quiet in here. Where’s Wesley?”

“With Ensign Yugen.  She took him to the stellar cartography lab today for a lesson.”  Beverly’s eyes twinkled.  “So...we’re all alone?”   Jean-Luc nodded.  Beverly reached up and unhooked Jean-Luc’s jacket and turned around to kiss him.  “I know what I want to do with my morning...”

“You know, I should probably do some captainly duties...” Beverly kissed him again and pushed his jacket off his shoulder.  “You are.”

“I am?” Beverly pulled off his undershirt and tossed it to one side. “Mm-hmm. You’re entertaining your guest...” 

“Oh, well, if I’m entertaining my guest, I might as well put on a show.”  Jean-Luc slowly unbuttoned her jacket and when he pushed it off her shoulders, he dipped his head and lavished kisses on her shoulders.  “Beverly, I love you.”

“I love you too, Jean-Luc.”  Jean-Luc slowly removed Beverly’s clothing and removed his trousers before he pushed her down on the sofa gently. “I thought you said no more antics on the sofa?” 

“Mm, I think I can make an exception.”  He kissed down her stomach and pulled her legs over his shoulders and lightly kissed one thigh and then the other before settling between her legs.  He licked up and down her fold before slipping his tongue inside . Beverly writhed as Jean-Luc continued to use his tongue and fingers on her. She cried out “Jean, Jean, Jean,” over and over until she finally stilled.  Jean-Luc grinned. Beverly had never called him Johnny like Jack and Walker, but he liked the way Jean rolled off her tongue.  Jean-Luc kissed his way back up to her lips, which he captured in a deep kiss.  Beverly smiled.  “Well, that was a first...”  Jean-Luc stared at her incredulously.  “Really?  You never...”  She shook her head. “Jack didn’t want to...mind you, he was more than willing to accept.”  Jean-Luc gathered her in his arms and held her close. “Oh my love.”  Beverly drowsily smiled and kissed him. “Is it nap time?”  Jean-Luc grinned and pulled the throw off the back of the settee.  Just one of the things he never knew he needed until he started sharing a living space with Beverly and Wesley.  He wasn’t going to complain, though.  He shifted them around so she was resting on top of him and covered them with the throw. Both were soon asleep, having gotten very little sleep during the night.

###

Wesley and Ensign Yugen entered the Captain’s quarters and Wesley saw his mother and Jean-Luc fast asleep on the sofa.  He held up a finger to Ensign Yugen. “Shhhh, Miz Abby.  Mommy and Uncle Jawn Loo are sleeeeeeping!”  Ensign Yugen blushed looking down at the couple.  It was obvious by Beverly’s bare shoulders and Jean-Luc’s bare chest they were both either naked or not wearing much under the blanket.  She was sure it would embarrass the Captain if he knew she had seen them like this.  

Over the weeks since she became Wesley’s tutor, she began to suspect that her former roommate’s speculation over the Captain and Doctor’s relationship was true,  but she had wisely kept her mouth shut.  It wasn’t her place to say anything or judge them.  Abigail frowned.  What was she going to do?  Wesley’s lessons were over for the day. While she didn’t mind spending more time with the boy,  she didn’t want the Doctor to worry if she woke up an her son wasn’t in the cabin. 

Abigail didn’t have to worry long, because Jean-Luc slowly opened his eyes.  He kissed Beverly’s head before noticing not only Wesley, but the Ensign was in the room as well.  His face coloured.  “Er, hello Ensign Yugen.  Hello, Wes.” Jean-Luc adjusted the blanket to conceal Beverly and Abigail looked away as he slid out from under her clad in his shorts and tugged on his trousers and undershirt.  “Thank you.”  Abigail nodded.

 

“I trust that you...”

“Didn’t see anything, Sir.  Doctor Crusher is taking a nap on the sofa, and you were hot and so you removed your jacket.  That’s all.”  Jean-Luc smiled at his Ensign. “Thank you, Ensign.”

“Uncle Jawn Loo, is Mommy tired?”  Jean-Luc knelt down to Wesley’s height. “Mommy is very tired, Wes.  Can you do me a big favour and go play in your room quietly while I talk to Miss Abby?  I’ll be in and we can play a game after, alright?” 

“Okay, Uncle Jawn Loo.” 

“Now, Ensign Yugen, where were we?  Oh, Yes.  We appreciate your continued discretion.  Now, how was Wesley’s lesson today?”

“It went very well, Sir. Wesley really is a gifted boy.”  Abigail fidgeted.  Jean-Luc beamed.  Abigail couldn’t help but notice how he smiled the same as the fathers she used to talk to when she was a teacher.  Obviously, her Captain considered Wesley to be as close as a son.  She couldn’t help but smile. 

“He is, isn’t he?  I find he asks me questions about my ship I have to call Simneon to answer!”  Abigail chuckled.  “I’d really like to talk to Doctor Crusher about Wesley.  I think he could do with an accelerated program.  I don’t know how the teacher on Starbase thirty-two feels, but Wesley is well beyond other five and six-year-olds.”  Jean-Luc’s smile got bigger. 

“Actually, Ensign.  Doctor Crusher and I wanted to speak with you,”  Jean-Luc glanced over his shoulder at the still sleeping Beverly before he softly continued.  “Could you...give me a moment?”

“Of course, Sir.  I’ll get us some tea?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  Once Ensign Yugen had her back to the sofa and was busy in the small galley-style kitchen, Jean-Luc gently kissed Beverly.  “Wake up, my love.  Wesley is home.”  Beverly’s eyes flew open. “Wes?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “With Abigail?”  Another nod. Beverly’s eyes went wide. “It’s alright. Ensign Yugen only saw you sleeping....but I thought we might speak to her about Wesley.”  Beverly softly smiled and kissed Jean-Luc.  “Let me just...go freshen up...”  Beverly slowly rose with the throw blanket wrapped around her.  Jean-Luc picked up her clothing and handed it to her before kissing her again.  “Take all the time you need.  I’ll brief Yugen.  She’s making you a cup of tea.”

“Mm, she’s good, Jean-Luc.  Back in a tick!” 

Beverly soon joined Jean-Luc and Abigail and took the proffered cup of tea. “You’re amazing,” she said to Abigail, who blushed. 

“Now then, Ensign Yugen. Beverly...that is, Doctor Crusher and I wanted to talk to you about Wesley’s education. It’s obvious he likes you very much, and I think it’s safe to say you enjoy teaching him?” Abigail smiled. “Oh yes, Sir! Wesley is remarkable.”  Beverly grinned.

“How would you like to teach Wesley on a more permanent basis?”

“Sir?”

“When we reach Starbase thirty-two, I plan on  taking a leave of absence from the ship to stay with Beverly through whatever happens with Jack...Commander Crusher.  We would like you to stay with us as Wesley’s tutor slash nanny.  I know it’s probably not what you signed up for when you signed up with Starfleet...”

“Oh, no, Sir!  I signed up because I heard there would be family ships in the future and would be in need of teachers.  My passion is teaching and children...not security.”

“I, ah, see.  So you would like the position?  It comes with a promotion to Lieutenant Junior Grade.”  Abigail’s eyes widened.  “T...th..thank you, Sir.  May I ask what my position would entail?”

“As you have stated, Wesley is an incredibly bright child and it’s obvious the regular school on Starbase thirty-two will only hold him back.  We would like you to tutor Wesley and bring him up to a level where he won’t be bored with learning.  I know he’s only five and a half now, but if you were willing to stay on as his tutor even after I might return to the _Stargazer_ , you would be in a prime position to be recommended for a position on one of the Galaxy class ships.   Naturally, if Beverly has any additional children,”  he paused and Beverly squeezed his hand, “you would be expected to educate them as well.”  Abigail nodded.  That sounded fair.  She also noticed the small pause and wondered if the Captain and Doctor would be having a baby together.  It sure sounded like it might be a possibility.

“And you said I would be his nanny, too?”

“Not really, Abigail.  I’m quite happy taking care of my son when he’s not in lessons, and I have an agreement with one of the other parents where we take turns looking after each other’s children when we are on shift, but if there was a time when myself or T’sal was unavailable, I would like you to be available to babysit.  Especially with what’s going on with Jack...I don’t know how much time I’ll need to spend in sickbay...” Beverly trailed off.

“That’s one of the reasons I’ll be taking leave, but there may be times when both Beverly and I are needed elsewhere and Wes might need a babysitter.”  Abigail turned the offer over in her head.  A promotion, albeit off the ship, but a promotion nonetheless.

“Sir, Doctor, what would happen if Doctor Crusher takes a position on board a starship? Would I come along?”

“I think that is something that would have to be discussed when the time came.  It would depend on the ship and the ship’s captain and if he allowed children on board.” 

“I understand.  Sir, I would like to accept.”  Jean-Luc picked up  a half-pip Abigail hadn’t even noticed on the table and pinned it to her  collar. “Congratulations Lieutenant Yugen.”  Abigail fingered the new pip on her collar. “Thank you Sir, Doctor.”

“And Lieutenant?  We appreciate your continued discretion with regards to our relationship. As you can guess, it’s not a topic we would like to be discussed on the ship.”

“Of course not, Sir.  May I be dismissed? I’d like to call my mom....”

“Certainly, Lieutenant.  We’ll see you in the morning at the usual time.”

###

Jean-Luc sat in his ready room and rubbed his temples.  He just got off from talking with Jack’s parents, and it had been an incredibly stressful conversation. Naturally, they wanted to speak with Beverly and Wesley, but Jean-Luc had managed to convince them Beverly could not be disturbed from her research.  It was a lie, but it was easily believable.  The truth was, Beverly just didn’t want to speak with her in-laws until she absolutely had to because she wasn’t entirely sure what she would say to them.  If Jack didn’t have any kind of directive, she was going to opt to terminate his life support.  There was no reason to keep him alive with machines when he wasn’t going to have a life.  Jean-Luc agreed with Beverly, although he had to admit he probably had selfish motives, too.   It wasn’t that he wanted his friend to be dead, but it would make his relationship with Beverly a lot easier, that was for sure. 

Jean-Luc went to his replicator and fetched a cup of tea. He told Beverly he would also contact their other best friend, Walker Keel.  If Walker wanted to see Jack, he would need to meet them at Starbase 32...and Walker would know something was going on between him and Beverly as soon as he lays eyes on them, for Walker knew about Jean-Luc’s previously hidden feelings for Beverly.  Jean-Luc had his communications officer initiate the call to Walker’s ship. 

“ _Jean-Luc! It’s good to see you.”_

“Walker. I’m afraid I’m not calling to exchange pleasantries.”

_“Oh?  Is everything alright?”_

“It’s Jack. He...we don’t think he’s going to make it.”

“ _We?”_ Walker leaned forward at his monitor.

“Beverly, Greyhorse, Quiace, and myself.”

_“Beverly, eh?”_

“Yes, she’s here on the ship with Wesley.” Walker raised his eyebrows at his friend.

_“You’re sleeping with her.”_

“Walker!”

_“Johnny, I can see it in your eyes when you said her name.  What are you doing?”_

“Truthfully, I have no idea. Beverly initiated everything that has happened with us...”

_“I see. And Jack?”_

“Beverly doesn’t think he will recover.  She says he’s brain dead, and the best solution may be to ‘pull the plug’, as it were.  I’ve just spoken with his parents, and they agree that if that’s the best solution, Beverly should proceed with it, but we’re going to see what Quiace has to say first. And of course, it depends on if Jack has any kind of living directive.  You don’t happen to know if he does, do you? There’s nothing in his Starfleet file, but I know it’s something we all have to do before a deep space mission.”

_“Sorry, Johnny. I have no idea what Jack would have said.  Can I come see you guys? I can be at Starbase thirty-two in five days.”_

“We’re still about a week away, but we’ll see you there. Picard out.”  The communication was terminated and Jean-Luc sat back in his chair.  Walker could tell just from a look on his face?  How many other people could tell?  He knew Gilaad suspected something was going on...but did the rest of his staff?  He shook his head and responded to the chime at his door.  “Come.”

Beverly came into his Ready Room and leaned across the desk to kiss him.  “Mm, are you here for business or pleasure?”  Beverly smirked. “What, I can’t just come to your ready room on a whim?”

“You can, I was just wondering what brings you to my Ready Room specifically now?”

“I wanted to show you something.”

“Oh?” Beverly splayed her fingers out on Jean-Luc’s desk.  He looked down at her hands puzzled.  “Bev, I don’t understand?”

“Jean, look at my hands...” Jean-Luc studied her hands.  He was staring at the same long, slender fingers that had been tracing circles on his chest just a few hours ago in bed.  He realised what was missing and gasped. “Beverly?”

“Jean-Luc, I can’t be married to Jack anymore.  I don’t want to be. “ Jean-Luc reached for her hands across the desk and clasped  them lightly. “Bev, are you sure?  I...I never intended on taking you away from Jack.”

“I know.  This is my decision. Do you know, Wesley asked me if you could be his Daddy since his is ‘bain dread’ as he calls it.”  Jean-Luc gaped at Beverly.  “He...did?”

“Honestly, I’m inclined to allow it.  Jean-Luc, you’ve done more for my son in five weeks than his father has in five years. It’s obvious you are smitten with him.”

“And his mother...”  Beverly blushed.  “So, what does this mean?  You taking off your rings?”

“Legally... I’m still his wife.  But emotionally...Jean-Luc, I’ve been yours for a long time.”

“Oh, Beverly,”  Jean-Luc stood up and walked in front of his desk to embrace Beverly.  “I’m yours, too.” He held her close and tenderly kissed her.  “But perhaps we shouldn’t be kissing in my Ready Room...besides, I think Wesley’s lessons are done for the day?”  Beverly nodded. 

“Do you want Wesley to call you Dad?”

“Actually, I think I would prefer Papa...”  Beverly rolled her eyes.  “Frenchie,” she muttered under her breath.  “Hmm, and you love it.” He dipped her and kissed her again. “Well, I’m not going to complain about my French lover...”


	6. Chapter 6

They were finally docking with Starbase 32.  Jean-Luc had decided to grant a 72-hour shoreleave for the crew, after which point his first officer would temporarily assume command of the _Stargazer_.  That is, if he was still needed on the base by Beverly.  Walker was already there and waiting for them at the bottom of the gangway, nervously pacing back and forth. 

Jean-Luc shouldered both his bag and Beverly’s and rested a hand on Beverly’s back as she held onto Wesley’s hand.  Behind them, a hovergurney was carefully moving Jack and all of his equipment.  The orderlies would take Jack straight to Sickbay, where Beverly was expected to join Doctor Quaice as soon as she was settled back in her quarters.

Wesley saw Walker and tore his hand free from his mother’s and ran down the gangway, dropping his small bag in the process. “Uncle Wally!”  Walker scooped up the boy and gave him a hug. “Wesley.  You’re getting big.  What is your mother feeding you?” Wesley giggled.  Walker gently lowered Wesley down and was surprised when Wesley went to hold Jean-Luc’s hand while he greeted Beverly.  “Bev, are you alright?”  Beverly nodded and snuck a glance over at Jean-Luc.  Jean-Luc had told her Walker suspected they were together, but hadn’t told her anything else from his conversation with their friend. Walker raised his eyebrows.  “Hm.  Catch up tonight?”  She nodded.  “Hello, Jean-Luc,”  Walker clapped his oldest friend on the back.  “Walker.  I wish we were seeing you under better circumstances,” Jean-Luc gestured to the gurney behind and Walker gasped as he took it all in. 

“Jackie?”

“I...I don’t think he’s going to make it.”

“Beverly, are you sure?”

“No, but we’ll see what Dalen says.  And I have to try and find Jack’s will....I hope it’s in my quarters and not back on Earth. Jean-Luc asked his parents and they didn’t know where it was, either.  I just can’t make a decision without knowing if Jack had an opinion on the matter.”  Walker rested a hand on Beverly’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze.  “We’ll find it.  Johnny and I will help you.”  Beverly smiled and snuck a glance back and Jean-Luc, who was now shouldering her bag, Wesley’ bag, and his own bag plus bending down to talk to Wesley.  Walker followed her eyes and grinned.  _Well, that’s nice and domestic._ Walker’s eyes bulged out when Wesley said “Papa, can I have a piggy back?” and he shot Beverly a look. Beverly held up her hands. “Not my doing.  Wes decided to call Jean-Luc papa all on his own.”

“And you’re allowing it?”

She nodded, tight lipped.  “We’ll talk later after Wes goes to bed?”  Walker nodded and noticed the tall blond woman coming towards them. Lieutenant Yugen paused at Beverly’s elbow on her way down the gangway.

“Doctor Crusher?  I was thinking I might give Wesley the day off today.  I’d like to speak with his teachers here so we can formulate a plan for him going forward.  I want to work with them, not against them.”

“Yes, of course, Abigail. It will give him time to settle back into our quarters.  I think you’ve been assigned down the corridor from us.”  Abigail nodded. “Oh, Abigail, I almost forgot.  This is our dear friend, Commander Walker Keel.  Walker, this is Lieutenant Abigail Yugen, she’s Wesley’s tutor.” 

Walker raised his eyebrows. “Hello, Lieutenant. I didn’t know Wesley had a tutor.”

“Only recent.  If you don’t need me, Doctor Crusher, I think I’ll find my quarters?”

“Of course, Abigail. Jean-Luc has granted the crew a seventy-two hour shoreleave, and that includes you too.”

“Thank you, Doctor Crusher.” Abigail turned to walk away and Walker let out a low whistle once she was out of sight.  Beverly smacked his arm. “Don’t you get any ideas. Wesley adores her. Besides, she’s too young for you.”  Walker raised his eyebrows at Beverly and glanced over at Jean-Luc.  “Alright, point taken.  But try not to hurt her?”

“Would I?”

When Jean-Luc approached Beverly’s quarters, he did a double take.  The name plaque outside read:

Lt. Commander Howard, Beverly, MD, Assistant Medical Officer

Crusher, Wesley

[temp] Captain Picard, Jean-Luc , _USS Stargazer_

He raised his eyebrows at Beverly. “I’m sorry, Doctor Howard. When did you...?” 

“After I took off my ring.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I could have alerted the crew to call you Howard instead of Crusher.”

“I told you, I don’t want to look like the bad wife.  I don’t mind being called Crusher for now, I just needed my own identity back.  I was going to change Wesley’s name too, but then I thought he might want his father’s name.  Especially if...”  She trailed off. 

“And my name?”

“Well, I assumed you were staying here...”  Jean-Luc grinned and squeezed her shoulder. “As long as you want me, or as long as Starfleet will let me.” 

Wesley impatiently tugged on his mother’s hand. “C’mon, Mommy...I wanna go inside and play with my toys!”

###

Wesley had long been put to bed and Jean-Luc caught Beverly around her waist as she walked past him to check yet another box for Jack’s directive.  He pulled her onto his lap and gently nuzzled at her neck.  “Bev, you’ve been looking for hours.  Take a break.” He brushed her hair to one side and placed a soft kiss on her neck, “Please?” 

Beverly leaned into Jean-Luc. “I know, but it has to be here somewhere, right?  I mean, Jack can’t possibly have been so arrogant that he never bothered with one, could he?  I mean, I have one...Ok, mine mostly has to do with Wesley’s future care...which reminds me I need to update it...you said you had one, too?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “I don’t think mine has been updated in twenty years, but I promise you, Bev, I have a directive filed.  It’s in my Starfleet records if you want to look at it.”  Beverly shook her head. “No, that’s a bit...morbid. I’m just relieved I won’t have to go through this if anything happened to you...”

“Oh? So, you’re planning on keeping me around then, are you?”   Beverly leaned up and kissed him soundly.  Jean-Luc tightened his arms around Beverly and deepened the kiss, roaming his hands across her back. She broke off the kiss and rested he head against his chest, listening to the steady thump of his artificial heart.  “Does that answer your question, Jean-Luc?”

“Yes.” Beverly slid off his lap reluctantly. “Walker will be here soon. I’m going to change.” 

“Hmm. I suppose that’s a good idea. “  Jean-Luc got up to follow her into the bedroom and she put out a hand to stop him. “Oh no you don’t.  If you come into that bedroom with me, I know what’s going to happen.” 

“Is that such a bad thing, my love?”

“It is when your other best friend is going to be here in fifteen minutes!”   Jean-Luc pretended to contemplate something important. “Hmm, fifteen minutes you say?  Challenge accepted!”  He grinned. 

As Beverly predicted, they were not changed in fifteen minutes. In fact, Jean-Luc answered the door without his shirt on while Beverly was still changing when Walker pressed the chime outside Beverly’s quarters.  Walker raised his eyebrows at Jean-Luc’s state of undress, but made no comment as he entered the room and presented a bottle of Aldebaran whisky to his friend.

“I thought we could all use a drink.”

“Ah, thank you, Walker.  Beverly will be out in a minute.  She’s...ah...changing.”

“Hmm. Changing or getting dressed?”  Jean-Luc looked down so Walker wouldn’t see the blush that started to creep up his face.  “Really, Johnny, what’s going on with you and Beverly?”

“Walker, I’ve loved Beverly for so many years, you know that.”

“Yes, I remember the look on your face at her wedding to Jack.  But you promised me you would forget about her!  And now, Jack’s on his death bed and you seduce his wife?”

“Actually, Wally, I seduced him,” Beverly said coming out of the bedroom clad in a chunky jumper and leggings.  “Don’t go blaming Jean-Luc for this.”

“I see...but Bev, what about Jack?”  Beverly eyed the bottle of green liquid in Jean-Luc’s hand.  “I’m going to need a big glass of that.”  Jean-Luc nodded and went to replicate three glasses and a bucket of ice.  When he returned, he presented Beverly with her glass – a highball glass filled with ice and whisky.  She chuckled. “Well, I did say I needed a big glass...”   Jean-Luc handed a smaller tumbler to Walker.  “Just doing my job, dear.” 

“What, getting me shitfaced?”

“You asked for a big glass.”

“Hmm.”  Beverly sipped her whisky and took a seat on her settee. She waited for Jean-Luc to sit next to her and she curled herself into his side as his free hand came to wrap around her. 

“Comfortable?”  Walker quipped, taking a seat himself across from the couple.  Beverly grinned at her friend. “I am, thanks.” 

Walker cleared his throat.  “Beverly, talk to me.  Tell me what’s going on?” 

Beverly spoke for ten minutes straight.  She told Walker everything -  how she had always had feelings for Jean-Luc, how well Jean-Luc had always treated her which only caused her to love him more, and how both devastated and a bit relieved she was when Jack had his accident. 

“It’s sort of been a blessing in disguise.”  Beverly looked down so she wouldn’t have to look at Jean-Luc or Walker.  Walker leaned across the table between them and tilted her chin up.  “What do you mean?”

“I...well,  it’s better if I show you.”  Beverly got up and went over to her desk.  She shuffled through a few PADDs before finding the one she wanted. Wordlessly, she handed it to Walker before refilling her glass.  Walker’s eyes bulged out when he read the PADD and he passed it to Jean-Luc. 

“Beverly? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I...Jean-Luc, I felt so guilty! I was planning on asking Jack for a divorce the next time the _Stargazer_ was here, but now...how can I?  What do I do?”  Jean-Luc put the PADD down and gathered her in his arms.  Walker rose from his seat and moved to sit on Beverly’s other side and patted her on the back.  “Beverly, if you don’t want to be married to Jack anymore...don’t be married to him. “

“You know it’s not as easy as that, Walker. Who’s going to take care of him?  Make decisions about his care?  His parents?  I can’t do that to them...and what would people say?  They’re already talking about us on the _Stargazer_. Won’t be long until they start talking about us here, too.”

“You don’t know that for sure, Bev.”

“Jean-Luc,  I know Abigail doesn’t talk about us, but you’d be surprised what Wesley overhears.  Wesley asked me if I was going to marry you because he heard someone say it in the corridor.”  Jean-Luc grinned.  “Would you?”

“What?”

“Marry me.”  Beverly detangled herself from Jean-Luc’s arms and stared up at him.  “What?”

“When all of this with Jack is over...when you feel ready to divorce him...I would like to marry you.”

“I...ah...Wally?  Could you excuse us for a minute?”  Beverly got up and dragged Jean-Luc into her bedroom. “Are you....are you serious?” He nodded.

“Well, that just adds a whole new layer to things, doesn’t it? How is _that_ going to look?!  My husband dies or I divorce him when he’s on death’s doorstep and then I turn around and marry his best friend? Jean-Luc, are you out of your mind?”

“But do you want to?”

“Yes.  Oh God, yes.”  Jean-Luc placed a gentle kiss on her lips and grinned at her. “So then, we’re engaged?” 

“No.” Jean-Luc’s face fell. “Jean-Luc...I can’t be engaged to you and married to Jack at the same time.  I mean, I know it’s acceptable in some cultures to be married to more than one person, but you know that’s not us.”

“I suppose it’s not,” he took her hand and brought it to his lips.  “I love you, Beverly Cheryl Howard.” 

“I...I know. I love you too.  And I do want to marry you and I want you to be Wesley’s papa and maybe even have a child with you...but I can’t.  Not right now...are you mad?” 

“How could I be mad?  You just told me you want to marry me and have a child with me...Beverly, even if it takes ten years for it to happen, you’ve still made me happy.  And if you want to file for divorce from Jack, we’ll make sure he’s taken care of.  You know I would never walk away from my best friend.”

“I know.  But...people would talk...I don’t know if I could handle it.” 

“Let’s go back out and talk it over with Walker.  I’m sure we can find a solution.” 

When they emerged from the bedroom, Walker eyed his friends.  Beverly’s eyes were red-rimmed, but Jean-Luc was grinning.  “So...do I offer congratulations?” 

“Not yet, Walker.  But, we did want to talk to you about everything.”  Walker re-filled the glasses and passed them to the couple, but Beverly shook her head. “No, I think I need something non-alcoholic.” 

“I’ll get it, Bev. What do you want?” 

“Water?  Or maybe tea?”

“Hmm.  Green tea with Jasmine.  Hot.”  Beverly smiled.  “You really are too good to me, you know that?”  Jean-Luc handed her the steaming cup. “I try my best.”

Walker looked between Jean-Luc and Beverly. “Did I miss something?”

“Beverly likes Green tea with Jasmine when she’s upset.”  Walker nodded. “Is this something you just learned?”  Jean-Luc shook his head. “Ah, no...I’ve known for a while.” 

“I see. So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Jean-Luc took a deep breath.  “Walker, what do you think we should do?  Ultimately, it’s going to be up to Beverly, but we value your opinion as our best friend.” 

“Honestly, Jean-Luc, Bev...I don’t know.  Have you found Jack’s, uh, what’s it called again?”

“Living will directive. And no, I haven’t.  I’ve gone through the stacks of PADDs he left here and I haven’t found anything.  I’m beginning to wonder if he had one at all.”  Walker frowned.  “No, Im’ sure he does...have you asked his parents?”

“I’ve spoken with them, and they don’t have anything at their house, either.  In fact, they assumed Beverly would be deciding what to do and have given her their blessing to do whatever she wants. Trouble is,  we’re having a hard time trying to decide what to do....especially in light of our relationship.”

“I, ah, see.  It might look suspicious if Beverly chooses to turn off life support since she’s with you, is that what you’re worried about?”

“Yes. Well, Beverly is.”  Walker sighed. “I’m sorry, Johnny.  I don’t know what to tell you guys to do either.  Have you seen Jack today?”  Beverly shook her head . “I was getting Wesley settled back in.  But  we have a meeting with Dalen tomorrow...would you like to come with us?” 

“Uh, if you think that would help?”  Beverly nodded. “You and Jean-Luc are his best friends.  I wouldn’t make an y decisions without your input, either.  And we need to think about Wes, too.  He asked me if Jean-Luc could be his new Daddy...we settled on Papa so it was different, but...Wesley doesn’t deserve to live his life with his father being kept alive from machines, does he?”

Walker shook his head again. “I don’t know, Bev.  Look, why don’t we all get some sleep tonight and we’ll talk in the morning?”  He drew Beverly into his arms and gave her a kiss on the cheek and whispered in her ear “I really do want you to be happy, Bev.” 

“Thank you, Wally.  It means a lot to me.”

“Goodnight, you two.  Tomorrow after we see Jack, I want to spend the day with Wesley. I’ve missed that kid.” 

“He’d like that. Goodnight, Walker.” 

The door slid shut behind their friend and Beverly allowed Jean-Luc to guide her to their bedroom.  He removed her clothing and kissed her tenderly before kneeling in front of her.  He gently nosed at her damp curls and placed a soft kiss on her outer lips.  Beverly  ran her fingers through Jean-Luc’s thinning hair and allowed him to part her legs.  He licked the entire length of her slit before plunging his tongue inside and reaching behind to knead her backside.  Beverly let out a soft whimper, which Jean-Luc took as encouragement and he added his fingers.  His tongue quickly found her clit, and he danced his tongue over it.  Beverly went weak in the knees and held onto Jean-Luc’s head and shoulders while she bucked against his face.  “Jean, please.  I don’t want to wait any longer...”

 He chuckled, and the vibrations nearly sent her over the edge.  Still using the tiniest amount of pressure, he sucked her clit and then playfully caught it between his teeth to gently tug.  Beverly arched backwards and nearly fell over as her orgasm ripped over her from Jean-Luc’ gently ministrations.  Jean-Luc gripped her hips firmly as he rose from the floor.  He pulled her close so she could rest her head on his chest and he dropped a kiss on her hair. “I love you, Bev.” 

Her words back were muffled by Jean-Luc’s shirt.  She pulled away and grinned at him. “You’re wearing too much clothing, Mister Picard.”

“That’s _Captain_ Picard, Doctor Howard.”  Beverly giggled and tugged his shirt off.  She dropped to her knees and worked open his trousers so she could shove them down his hips along with his shorts.  She licked the tip of his penis and Jean-Luc shuddered. “Bev...you don’t have to.  Tonight is about you. Please. Let me love you.” 

“Jean-Luc, I want to show you how much I love you.”  She took him into her mouth and Jean-Luc forgot all about protesting.  He ran his fingers through her hair and couldn’t help but thrust against her mouth.  When Beverly laughed, her laughter hummed straight through him  and he became even more surprised when Beverly’s slender fingers traced along the delicate skin behind his testicles.  Jean-Luc couldn’t handle the sensations and with a strangled cry he came.  “I’m sorry, Bev.  That was....that was....brilliant,” he panted out.  Beverly merely smirked and rose back to her feet.

She tugged him towards the bed. “Make love to me?” 

Jean-Luc leaned on the edge of the bed. “Let a fellow catch his breath first, would you?  I’m not as young as you, you know.”  Beverly leaned over and kissed him. “My. Old. Man.”  She punctuated each word with a kiss.  Jean-Luc smiled. “Your old man. Always.”


	7. Chapter 7

When Jen-Luc woke up in the morning, it was to a small person lying in bed between him and Beverly.  Jean-Luc’s face coloured as he realised both he and Beverly had fallen asleep naked and he made a mental note that living with a five-year-old meant sleeping in pyjamas or at least his shorts from now on.  He gently nudged Beverly awake, and when she woke up she accidentally jostled Wesley.  Wesley opened his eyes.

“Papa, you forgot to put on your pyjamas last night.” 

“So I did, Wes.  I must have been very tired.” 

“Mommy forgot to put hers on, too.”  Beverly blushed. 

“She was very tired too, weren’t you Bev?”  Jean-Luc winked at Beverly.  “Oh, yes, I was so tired!”

“Papa, why don’t you call Mommy mommy?” 

“Because she’s not _my_ mommy, she’s yours.”

“Oh. Is Mommy your wife?”  It was Jean-Luc’s turn to colour.  “Err....” 

“ _Wesley!_ Where did you hear that?”

“On Papa’s ship when Miz Abby was taking me to the jim-nasey.”  Beverly shot a look at Jean-Luc as if to say _I told you there was talk!_ Jean-Luc merely shrugged.  Beverly knew where he stood on marriage to her, but she did have to resolve things with Jack one way or another. 

“No, Wesley. Your mommy isn’t my wife yet, but she will be in the future.”

“’Kay.  Can I have some Kirkpops?” 

“What are Kirkpops?” 

“Cereal with Cap’n Kirk!”  Jean-Luc looked over at Beverly, puzzled.  “It’s a sugary cereal that Wesley knows he can only have _occasionally_.  Captain Kirk is pictured on the box.”  She turned to Wesley, “Wes, how about you have cereal with Captain Picard instead?”

“You have your own cereal?”  Wesley looked wide-eyed at Jean-Luc. 

“Er, no.  But we can have breakfast together if you get out of bed so I can put some clothes on.”

“’Kay!”  Wesley jumped off the bed and went back into his room.  Jean-Luc turned a wry smile on Beverly. “Well, that was more than a little embarrassing.” 

“A little?  Jean-Luc, my son caught us naked in bed!”

“Yes, but he’s too young to understand. We’ll just have to make sure we have pyjamas handy to put on after we make love  because I,”  he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, ”do not intend to stop.  Ever.”  He gave her a quick kiss before swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “Bev,  did my bag wind up in here?” 

“I, uh, unpacked for you...I made room for your stuff when you were reading to Wes last night.” Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows but followed her pointing finger to  a drawer that held his boxers.  “I suppose my uniform is in the closet?”  Beverly nodded.  “Hmm.” 

“What?”

“Nothing...I just didn’t expect you to unpack for me.” 

“I’m sorry?”

“No, don’t be.  It’s...nice.”  He gave Beverly a hug and kissed her hair.  “I’ve just never had anyone in my life who would have unpacked for me.” 

“Oh.”  Beverly pulled on her nightgown and a robe.  “Right. I need coffee before I can get dressed.”  She shuffled out of the room leaving a bemused Jean-Luc as he pulled open other drawers in Beverly’s room and found his belongings.  It was...domestic.  He liked it. 

###

Abigail was still on shore leave, so Beverly made arrangements for the Vulcan doctor, T’Sal, to look after Wesley while she, Jean-Luc, and Walker met with Dalen Quaice.  Doctor Quaice was a renowned neurobiologist.  Beverly had been working with Quaice since she had become pregnant with Wesley and while she was learning a lot from working with the man, she knew she wasn’t nearly as knowledgeable as him. 

Beverly clutched both Jean-Luc’s and Walker’s hands as they entered Sickbay.  She was in her own domain, and yet, everything felt so strange and foreign.  She had only been away for six weeks, but it might as well have been six months.  She led the two men towards the back corner where she, T’Sal, and Dalen all maintained office space.  Through the window at the back of Dalen’s office they could see Jack with the same machinery he was hooked up to on the _Stargazer._   Beverly sighed and took a seat in front of her mentor’s desk. Jean-Luc stood behind her and rested his hand on her shoulder and Walker sat in the other chair.

Dalen Quaice was an older man.  He and his wife had been living at Starbase 32 for going on twenty-five years, but they loved the life they led. They didn’t have any children, but they treated Beverly and T’Sal as if they were their daughters, and likewise had always treated Beverly and T’Sal’s children as if they were their grandchildren.  Dalen looked over at his surrogate daughter and peered at her over the edge of his glasses.  She looked stressed, but he could tell she was visibly comforted by Jean-Luc’s hand on her shoulder and Dalen briefly wondered if the rumours he had heard were true.  He didn’t know who the other man in the office was, but he looked like a good friend, too.  Dalen extended his hand to the unknown man. “Hello, I know Captain Picard, but I’m afraid I don’t know who you are?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Dalen. Dalen, this is Commander Walker Keel. He, Jack, and Jean-Luc are basically like the three musketeers and I didn’t want to make any decisions without both Jean-Luc and Wally.  Wally, this is my boss, Doctor Quaice.”  Behind Beverly, Jean-Luc exchanged a glance with Walker and mouthed “ _three musketeers?_ ” Walker grinned back at his friend while he shook Dalen’s hand.  “I’m sorry to be meeting you under such rough circumstances, but I’m pleased to finally meet you.  Beverly has told us a lot about you.” 

“Thank you.  Now, shall we get down to business?  Beverly, I’ve read over all of Doctor Greyhorse and your reports and I’ve examined Jack – “

“It’s hopeless, isn’t it?  Jack isn’t going to wake up. Ever.”

“Now, Beverly, let’s not be hasty. Would you let me speak?”  Beverly looked down at her hands and Jean-Luc gently squeezed her shoulder. “Sorry, Dalen.”

“As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted,”  he shot a small smile at Beverly, “I have examined Jack and at first glance, it doesn’t look hopeful for him.  However, there are a few procedures we can try with your permission that might improve his odds.”  Jean-Luc spoke up for Beverly since she was busy staring slack-jawed at her mentor. 

“What kind of procedures, Doctor?” Doctor Quaice launched into a highly technical discussion about medical procedures and the human brain that washed over Jean-Luc and Walker completely.  Both had taken the required human and exobiology classes at the Academy, but that had been a long time ago, and most definitely had not been as thorough as what you would learn in medical school.  Jean-Luc was pleased to see Beverly nodding her head at what Doctor Quaice was telling them.  Hopefully, she would understand. 

“I see what you’re getting at, Dalen, but doesn’t that run the risk of well, destroying who Jack is?”  Walker looked over at Beverly and Jean-Luc.  “What do you mean, destroy who he is, Bev?” 

“The procedure Dalen is talking about...in theory it could work, but it runs the risk of altering Jack’s sense of self and personality.  If he woke up, he might not act like Jack, or even know who Jack is.”

Jean-Luc shook his head.  “But didn’t you say that could happen if he wakes naturally? I’m sorry Bev, Doctor Quaice. A lot of this is going right over my head. Astrophysics and Archaeology I understand and  I can command a ship of 400, but I have to admit biology was never my strong suit.”  Beverly managed a small smile. “Yes, but this procedure has a higher risk.  For example, Jack might wake up and not know he’s your science officer, or know that you and Wally are his best friends, or he....”  Beverly’s voice caught, “he might not know who his son is.”  Jean-Luc moved his hand from resting on her shoulder to wrap around her comfortingly.

“So, it’s like amnesia? The knowledge will come back later?”

“No.  It would be permanently gone. Aspects of his personality...the things that make Jack, well   _Jack,_ could be missing. I really need the base’s psychologist to explain this better.”  Walker spoke up and said the words Jean-Luc was afraid to.  “Doctor Quiace, how long do we have to decide?” 

“Ideally, 48 hours.  Any longer and the risks are greater.  Of course, if you find Jack’s directive and he has instructions on saving or not trying to save him, that would be a big help to us all.”  Walker nodded, tight lipped. “I understand, Doctor.” Walker turned towards Jean-Luc.  “Johnny, permission to board the _Stargazer_ and look in Jack’s quarters and his lab? I know you already looked, but maybe a fresh set of eyes would help?”

“Granted.  I’ll contact Ben Zoma to give you access to his quarters.” Beverly reached out for Walker’s hand.  “Thank you, Wally.”

“Anything for you, Jack, and Wes. You too, Johnny.  You both know it. Tell Wes I’ll take him out to the holocinema later.”  Walker nodded to Quaice and Jean-Luc before leaving to head to the _Stargazer_ , since it was only docked for another two days. 

Doctor Quaice rose from behind his desk.  “Beverly, Captain...I understand how hard this is for you.  I need to tend to some of the other patients. Beverly, consider yourself still on leave, alright?  I don’t want to see you touch any of your work.” Jean-Luc reached his hand out to shake the doctor’s. “Thank you, Doctor, you’ve given us a lot to think about.”  Quaice nodded and watched Jean-Luc’s interaction with Beverly.  Of course, he had known the Captain as long as Beverly had been serving under him and his wife always told him the Captain had feelings for the young Doctor, but now that he observed them together, he could see that the feelings went both ways.  He hoped Jack’s issues would be resolved one way or another for their sake, as he could see his protégé cared deeply for the Captain. 

Beverly dragged Jean-Luc into her office and closed the door behind her and flicked the lock before she grabbed him in a kiss.  Jean-Luc reluctantly broke the kiss and rested his head against her forehead “Bev, my love, should we be kissing in your office?  There’s a very large glass window over there...”

“I can see out. No one can see in,” Beverly reached for the fastening on Jean-Luc’s trousers.  He raised his eyebrows at her.  She whispered, “I’m not wearing any knickers under my uniform skirt.” His eyebrows rose further but he grabbed her and crushed his lips against hers. “You really are my little minx, aren’t you?” 

“Jean-Luc, I can honestly say you make me feel things no one ever has before.”  Beverly hiked her skirt up and sat on the edge of her desk.  She tugged him closer and unzipped his trousers.  She raised her eyebrows back at him. “My my, someone’s excited.”  Jean-Luc leaned forward and gently bit her ear.  Beverly moaned and angled herself closer.  “I think you’re just as excited,”  he commented.  “I am.”  She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him in towards her. “Please?”

Dr Quaice pretended he couldn’t hear the thump of Beverly’s desk from his office and went about his work.  Later, when things calmed down, he would lecture Beverly on inappropriate behaviour in Sickbay. 

###

Walker entered Jack’s quarters and looked around.  Servobots kept the room clean, but the room felt oddly quiet.  He could see where Beverly or Jean-Luc had started going through Jack’s desk, and he decided to start there.  As he said to Jean-Luc earlier, a fresh pair of eyes might help.  He surveyed all the junk on the desk and spilling out of the drawers. _Didn’t Jack ever throw anything away?_ He quickly started sorting the PADDs into piles -  work and personal, then further divided the personal pile. He even found a PADD with an old letter from him on it he sent Jack years ago.  Walker shook his head. No wonder Jean-Luc had told him once they were running out of PADDs on the ship.  Jack clearly never bothered turning them into engineering when he was done with them or archived his files onto data chips, though there was a small pile that seemed to be a combination of data chips and poker chips in a dish.  Walker decided he would check those as he doubted Jean-Luc had bothered. 

The first chip he looked at brought a smile to his face.  It was baby photos of Wesley, obviously sent by Beverly.  He set it to one side and popped another chip into the console.  Bank statements.  Potentially useful for Beverly, but still not what he needed.  The next chip caused him to gasp.  It showed an ultrasound of a baby...but it wasn’t Beverly’s name in the corner of the image, so he knew this wasn’t from when Beverly was pregnant with Jack.  In fact, the date on the opposite corner was only a few months ago.  Walker wondered who this woman was and if she was a crewmember. 

Sure enough, there was a Lieutenant junior grade on the crew manifest named Annisyn Lobo.  Walker frowned . Why would this woman send a picture of her ultrasound to Jack?  He pocketed the chip and headed to Sickbay to see what Doctor Greyhorse could tell him. 

###

Jean-Luc and Beverly adjusted their clothing and exited Beverly’s office.  They needed to retrieve Wesley and Jean-Luc wanted to go by the promenade to pick up something.  Jean-Luc nearly bowled over one of his Lieutenants as they were approaching sickbay.  “Lieutenant Lobo, what are you doing here?”  Beverly noticed the small, protruding bulge under her uniform and nudged Jean-Luc. Beverly smiled at the younger woman.  “Are you here for a neonatal check up?” The woman nodded. 

“Why don’t I take you in?  I’m technically on leave, but I just love babies . Jean-Luc, would you excuse me?” 

“Uhm, of course, Doctor.  I’ll pick up Wesley for you and take him back to your quarters if that’s alright?”  Jean-Luc tried to remain detached in front of one of his crewmen.  Beverly nodded. “Thank you, _Captain_. I’m sure Wesley would love spending more time with you. “  Jean-Luc leaned in to give Beverly a kiss, then realised he was being watched so he settled for patting Beverly’s shoulder.  Beverly frowned, but she supposed Jean-Luc didn’t want his ship talking about them.  Beverly wrapped an arm around the Lieutenant’s shoulder and guided her into Sickbay.  “How far along are you?” were the last words Jean-Luc heard before the doors swished shut behind them.

“Five months,”  the Lieutenant responded with tears in her eyes . Beverly drew the woman in for a hug.  “Are you alright?” The woman sniffed. “It’s the baby’s father.  He-he was injured.”  Beverly frowned.  The father must not be part of the _Stargazer_ ’s crew, since there hadn’t been anyone else in Sickbay for the almost seven weeks Jack had been there.  “I’m very sorry to hear that.  I’m Doctor Howard, what’s your name?” 

“Annisyn Lobo. Lieutenant junior grade.” 

“Ah, I was a Lieutenant when I was pregnant with my son.  It’s hard work. I hope you’ve been taking good care of yourself.”  Annisyn looked down at her hands.  Beverly patted her arm. “Worried about your...” she trailed off, not wanting to assume anything about the young woman. “Boyfriend,” Annisyn supplied. 

“Right, well, let’s get you examined.” Beverly passed Annisyn a gown and instructed her to change behind the curtain. “I’ll get the ultrasound machine and we can check on that baby of yours.” 

###

“Carter, just the man I want to see.”

“Hello, Commander Keel.  What can I do for you?  I’ve heard from Doctor Quaice....sounds like there might be some positive news about Jack?” Walker nodded.  “Possibly. Bev still has to decide what to do, and I offered to take another look in Jack’s quarters to see if we could find anything about his wishes.  A fresh pair of eyes and all. “  Carter Greyhorse nodded, not sure where Walker was headed with this.  “And did you?  Find anything?” 

“Actually, I found something a bit odd on Jack’s desk.” He twirled the data chip in his hand. “I think it belongs to one of your patients.”

“Oh?” 

“A Lieutenant  Annisyn Lobo?”  Carter Greyhorse paled, understanding what Walker was getting at.  “Of course, you understand, Commander...I can’t breach patient doctor confidentiality...”

“No?  But how about telling Beverly that her _husband_ was going to be a father again? “

“She seems pretty cosy with the Captain....”

“What was that, Carter?  I know you didn’t just make a comment about your superior officer’s personal life.”

“No, of course not.  It was an oversight that I didn’t mention this to Beverly.  I’m sorry.”

“And this...Annisyn woman? Was she in to visit Jack at all?”

“Yes.  In fact, she’s due for a check up today...she should be here for one.  Unless she’s gone to the-“ Walker dashed out of the room. “Gotta go, Carter!”

“-base.” 

###

Wesley was overjoyed to see Jean-Luc.  “Papa! “  Jean-Luc grinned.  He loved hearing Wesley call him Papa. T’Sal merely raised a Vulcan eyebrow.  “Thank you for looking after Wesley for Beverly.  She’s looking after a patient, so I told her I would fetch Wesley.”

“Beverly is supposed to be on leave.”

“Yes, well, you know Beverly. One of my Lieutenants is pregnant, and you know how much Beverly loves babies.”

“Of course.”

“Well, thanks again Doctor.” Wesley took Jean-Luc’s hand as they walked down the corridor. “Wesley, would you like to go on a very important errand with me?”

“Ooh can I?”

“Absolutely. I need to go to the Promenade to get something for your mother.”

“A Pwesent?”

“Yes. A present.”  Wesley swung Jean-Luc’s arm and decided to try his luck. “Can I have an ice cream?”

“No, you’ll spoil your dinner.”  Wesley’s face fell. “Tell you what.  If you eat all your dinner tonight, we’ll have ice cream after dinner.”

“Fwom the Pwomenade?” Jean-Luc nodded.  “Yay! I’ll eat all my dinner, I pwomise!”

Jean-Luc took Wesley to a small jewellery shop where he spoke a few words to the shopkeeper before pocketing a small velvet box.  “Right, young man, what shall we do next?”

“Toy store?”

###

“So, Annisyn, tell me about your boyfriend.  How did you meet?”  Beverly was adjusting the monitor over the young woman so she would be able to see an image of her baby.  Beverly inserted a data chip as most women wanted a recording of it to share with their partners if their partner wasn’t present.

“Oh. Uhh...we served together.” 

“On the _Stargazer_?”  Annisyn nodded.  “Oh, I hadn’t realised someone else had been badly injured . I’m sorry, I must have been in my own little world.”  Beverly made a few adjustments. “There.  Well, she looks nice and healthy.”

“She?”

“Yes, it’s a girl.  Now, we just need to do a quick exam to make sure everything is alrigh....”  Beverly trailed off and the colour drained from her face as she read the readout on the monitor.  The father of Annisyn’s child as listed on her Starfleet medical file was none other than Jack Crusher.


	8. Chapter 8

Jean-Luc and Wesley rounded the corner and found Lieutenant Yugen pacing back and forth outside Beverly’s quarters.

“Lieutenant?”

“Sir.  Uhm, Walker...that is, Commander Keel suggested I meet you and take you and Wesley back to my quarters so you can talk to Commander Keel.  We’ll...I mean, I’ll feed Wesley his dinner for you.” Jean-Luc looked on at her bemused. “Do you know why?”  Abigail looked down at the floor.  “Er..Yes, Sir...Ah..Maybe you had better speak to Walker – I mean Commander Keel before you go in there?” 

“Is he in your quarters?”  She nodded.

The three of them entered Abigail’s small quarters and found Walker pacing back and forth in the small space. “Uncle Wally!” 

“Hiya, Wes.  Hey, Wes, could you do me a big favour and play in Miss Abby’s bedroom for a few minutes?”

“If I haveta.” Walker nodded.  Abigail trailed behind Wesley “I’ll just...ah...look after Wes while you...chat...”

Jean-Luc eyed his best friend. “Walker. What’s going on? If this is about you and Lieutenant Yugen, we told you just don’t hurt her.”

“Ah, no.  Jean-Luc...Did you know you have a pregnant Lieutenant on the S _targazer_? “

“Yes, I just saw her today, actually. Lieutenant Lobo, was it? Don’t tell me her baby is yours, because that would be impossible...”

“It’s Jack’s.” 

“What?”

“It’s true.  I, ah, found the ultrasound in Jack’s quarters and questioned Greyhorse about it.”  Jean-Luc ran his hands over his face.  “Beverly and I saw her today and she examined her after I left...are you sure it’s Jack’s?”

“Yeah. Greyhorse confirmed it.” Jean-Luc paled.

“And it would be listed on her medical file that Beverly would have accessed to examine her....”

“Yep.”

“ _Merde_.”

“You can say that again.”   Jean-Luc gave a wry smile to his best friend. “And Beverly is...?”

“In her...er...your quarters, according to the base’s computer.”  Jean-Luc nodded, tight lipped. 

“Look, I’ll take Wesley to the holocinema and then make sure he gets his dinner. If I don’t hear from you, Wes will have a sleepover with Uncle Wally, alright?  I think Bev needs you all to herself tonight.”

“You might be right.  Thank you, Walker. You’re a good friend...to all of us.” Walker shrugged. “Not really.  First thing I wanted to do was run into Jack’s room and yank out all his cables.” 

“Yes, well, I’m sure that thought crossed Beverly’s mind as well..not to mention if he wasn’t already fighting for his life I would probably kill him myself...this puts a new spin on things, doesn’t it?”  Jean-Luc fingered his pocket where Walker could see a square outline.  “Jean-Luc, you didn’t?” Jean-Luc nodded. “After last night...well, I know Beverly said she didn’t want to get married yet, but I just wanted to give her the ring...I suppose tonight is a bad night to give it to her...but then again, maybe not.  We’ll see.”  Jean-Luc seemed to gather his senses. “Right.  I’ll just say goodbye to Wes and go take care of my...well, of Beverly.”

“Fiancée, Johnny. You know she’s going to be your wife.”

“Maybe. Someday. I don’t want to push her.”  Walker grinned.  “You know, Johnny, I really regret introducing her to Jack.  You and her had really hit it off, and I don’t know why I thought she and Jack would be good together...obviously, I was wrong.

“Hm. Quite.” Jean-Luc called out a bit louder. “Wesley, I’m going to leave you here with Uncle Wally.  He said he’ll take you to the cinema and let you sleepover with him tonight.  But behave yourself....and don’t badger Uncle Wally for junk food!”  A muffled “Okay, Papa” came from the other room.

“Ah, best part of being an Uncle. Stuff the kid full of sugar and then pass him back to his parents.” 

“I’m not his father.”

“Yet.  Look, go talk to Bev. I’m rooting for you.”

“Thanks?”

Jean-Luc adjusted his uniform and exited the Lieutenant’s quarters and headed next door. He debated ringing the chime, but since he technically lived there too, he just entered his access code.  There was a trunk flung open on the floor with items spilling out of it – a white lace wedding gown,  one of Jack’s old uniforms, a broken champagne flute or possibly two, a model of a ship he had seen in Wesley’s room - also broken, one boot,  and a book titled _How to Advance your Career through Marriage_.  Jean-Luc grimaced.  Beverly came out of the bedroom with another armful of possessions – an old style communicator, some men’s pyjamas, another book, and a jewellery box.  Beverly threw the items into the trunk and the jewellery box sprang open spilling out an engagement ring on a chain, a  wedding band, two necklaces, a few pairs of earrings, and a bracelet. Everything Jack had ever given her. 

“Beverly?”  Beverly looked up at Jean-Luc, startled.  Her eyes were red rimmed and he could see the tracks down her face left by her tears.  He held out his arms to her and she collapsed into his arms, sobbing.  Jean-Luc gently lowered them to the floor and held her in his lap while she cried, rubbing her back, kissing her head, and occasionally making soothing noises.

“I shouldn’t care...I don’t care, you know.”

“Shh, my love. It’s alright to be upset.  Let it all out.”  Jean-Luc stroked her back  and gently kissed her forehead. 

“Did you know?  Tell me you didn’t know...” Beverly looked up into Jean-Luc’s eyes. “Of course I didn’t know. You think if I did know, Jack would still be alive?  I’d have sent him out an airlock as soon as I found out.  I don’t know how he managed to keep the relationship a secret...unless it was just a one-night stand...”

“Annisyn called him her boyfriend.” Beverly spat out bitterly.

“I see.”

“He told her he was going to end things with me to be with her.  He was going to marry her and leave the _Stargazer_  for her and her daughter.  Something he wouldn’t do for me and Wes.” 

“How do you know this?”

“Annisyn told me after I saw her records listing Jack as the father. She hadn’t realised I was his wife at first. But you know what I can’t get over? He had a girlfriend while he was married to me and here I was feeling guilty because I wanted to end our marriage to be with you.”  Beverly jerked her head to where a single PADD was sitting on her desk.  “I ended it.”

“Beverly?”

“I signed the papers. Sent them to Starfleet.  Jack Crusher is no longer my husband or the father of my child.  Wesley’s last name is now Howard.  And I am no longer responsible for Jack’s care.  I...I thought that even if I dissolved the marriage I would still take care of Jack, but now?  Let Annisyn do it.  I hope Jack forgets all about ever being married to me and about Wesley when Dalen operates.  You can be Wesley’s father.”

“Beverly, you don’t mean that.”

“I do. Jack Crusher can go to hell.”

“ _Beverly._ ”

“Do you know what hurts the most?  Three months ago, I asked Jack if we could try for another baby. I thought...well, I thought it might help our relationship improve. We had been fighting a lot...I can’t believe you hadn’t noticed... and he said he didn’t want any more children.  That one was enough. That’s one of the reasons I decided I was going to leave Jack...I wanted another child.   Annisyn is five months pregnant, Jean-Luc.  Five.  So he probably already knew she was pregnant when I told him I wanted another child. And he didn’t have the decency to tell me he had cheated on me _and_ he lied about wanting another child. Of course, maybe he didn’t want Annisyn’s baby, but then why tell her he would leave me for her? ” 

“Beverly...I’m sorry.  I had no idea Jack was running around on you. I swear it.” 

“I know.  He must have hidden it well.”

“What’s the trunk for?” 

“All of Jack’s things.  Well, and some things he had give me or Wesley. They can go to Annisyn to deal with.”

“I see. And do you want me to dismiss him?  Technically, he is still my second officer.”

“I...”

“Beverly, if you and Wesley come live with me on the _Stargazer_ , I can’t have Jack there too.”

“Why would we live with you?”

“Well...I wouldn’t expect to live apart from my wife and my son...or any other children we have in the future.”

“Uh...wife? When did...”

“Beverly... I know last night you said you weren’t ready, but I need you to know that I am willing to wait however long you need me to wait for you to be ready, and I want you to know I love you, and I love Wesley.  I always have loved you, and I always will.  If I have to give up the _Stargazer_ to stay with you and Wes, I’ll give it up. I want you to be in my life...forever...”  Jean-Luc fumbled in his pocket and pulled out the small box he picked up earlier with Wesley. 

“Jean-Luc?”  Jean-Luc slowly opened the box and Beverly gasped when she saw the beautiful ring.  It was simple and elegant.  Jean-Luc had even thought about her profession and the ring didn’t have any raised stones that could scratch or snag her patients as they were all embedded. She could wear it on her finger instead of on a chain around her neck like she had done with Jack’s ring.  It was a beautiful ring.  Beverly tenderly lifted the ring up off its velvet pad and held it out to Jean-Luc.  “Aren’t you going to put it on my finger?”

“Is that a yes?”

“Well, it’s not a no...but you didn’t actually _ask_ me anything, so...” 

“Oh, Beverly...”  Jean-Luc slipped the simple ring onto her finger and kissed her.  “We can have as long of an engagement as you need.  Whatever you want.   What do you want?”

“Right now? I want you to hold me in our bed.”

“I can do that.”  Jean-Luc  gently pushed Beverly off his lap so he could stand up.  He held out his hand to help her stand and led her into the bedroom, removing his shoes.  He sat on the bed and patted the bed next to him for Beverly, but before she got in the bed, she removed her uniform  and stood in front of him clad in a standard bra and knickers.  “Have I told you you’re gorgeous today?”  Jean-Luc worked open his own tunic and stood up to remove his trousers. Beverly smirked.

“And these aren’t even my sexy ones.”

“Doesn’t matter. You are beautiful no matter what you wear.”   Jean-Luc reached for Beverly’s hand and gave it a squeeze.  “Walker took Wes to the holocinema and said if he didn’t hear from us this evening he would have Wes sleep in his quarters...”  Beverly raised her eyebrows.  “Is that so?”  Jean-Luc kissed Beverly’s brow.  “Yep.”

“Well, in that case, I know what I want to do...” Beverly slid her hands across Jean-Luc’ chest and tugged off his simple undershirt before reaching behind her back to unhook her bra.

 “I thought you wanted to Cuddle?”

“Mm-hmm. Naked.” 

###

Beverly traced lazy circles on Jean-Luc’s chest while he held her close.  “Jean-Luc,  do you want to be Wesley’s father?” Jean-Luc kissed the top of Beverly’s head. “You know I do, Bev.  I love him as if he was my own.  Why do you ask?”

“I thought maybe you might like to adopt him and make him a Picard instead of a Howard.” 

“I hadn’t thought about it.  I guess I assumed Wesley would keep Jack’s name...”

“No. Jack is scum. The only good thing that man did was give me Wesley.”

“Beverly, you don’t mean that.” 

“I do,” Beverly shifted in their bed to look at Jean-Luc’s face.  “I know I said I had wanted to divorce him for a few months now, but...” 

“You would have rather it been on your terms, and not based on him getting my Lieutenant pregnant.” 

“I know, I sound like a hypocrite because I’ve been sleeping with you for the past two months while he’s been unconscious, but...somehow what he did to me feels worse.”  Jean-Luc sat up in bed and continued to hold Beverly in a loose embrace.  “I know you’ve sent off the paperwork to dissolve your marriage, but are you really writing off Jack completely?”  Beverly played with a lose thread on the blanket before responding.  “Yes.  I understand he’s still your best friend and second officer, but I don’t want anything to do with him anymore.”  Jean-Luc sighed but drew Beverly closer.  “Then, as his commanding officer, I suppose it now falls to me to decide what Doctor Quaice should do.”

“I’m sorry, Jean-Luc.” Jean-Luc pressed a kiss to the top of Beverly’s head.  “It’s not your fault.  What about Annisyn’s daughter?”

“What about her?”

“Well, her daughter will be Wesley’s half sister, same as if you and I have a child together.  Shouldn’t Wes know his sister?” Beverly frowned.

“I hadn’t thought about it...I suppose...but, I don’t want Wesley to have any contact with Jack.  At least, not until Wesley is older and then if Wes decides to see him, it would be his decision.”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “What if Jack fights us for visitation or custody?” 

“Why would he?” Jean-Luc shrugged. “I don’t feel as though I know Jack anymore, but Jack was proud of Wesley. I think Jack does love him...”

“Yeah, well, he has a funny way of showing it.  Instead of coming to see us, he probably was off with Annisyn, or someone else.  God, what if there are other children out there fathered by Jack Crusher? How many half siblings does Wesley have?”

“I’m sorry, Bev.  I should have kept a better eye on Jack.” Beverly rolled her eyes. “No, it wasn’t your responsibility. But you should have told me how you felt before I married Jack.”  Beverly moved to straddle Jean-Luc’s legs.  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Jean-Luc moved his hands to tightly grasp Beverly’s hips and he leaned forward to rest his head on her now exposed breasts.  “I was afraid.”  Beverly stroked the hair on the back of his neck. “Scared of what?”  Jean-Luc looked up at her.  “Losing you.  I was afraid if I told you how I felt...if I told you I had feelings for you as more than a friend that I would lose our friendship.”

“And you’re not afraid anymore?”

“Oh no, I’m terrified.”  Beverly grinned and raked her fingernails down Jean-Luc’s back and revelled in the moan that erupted from his lips. “You like that, do you?” 

“Oh God, yes. It _should_ hurt, but...”  Jean-Luc moaned again as Beverly scratched his back again,  this time applying more pressure.  He lifted his lips to hers and was passionately attacking her lips when they heard the muted chiming of the station’s internal comm system.

“ _Sickbay to Doctor Howard.”_

Beverly sighed as she broke off the kiss and rested her head against Jean-Luc’s forehead before fumbling for the activation button next to the bed. “Go ahead, Dalen.” 

_“Beverly, Jack’s taken another turn. Have you decided what to do?”_

“I’m not married to him anymore. Don’t ask me.”

_“Beverly?”_

“Filed the paperwork this afternoon, Dalen.  Do you remember the young Lieutenant I examined this morning?  She’s having Jack’s baby.”

_“Oh.  I’m...I’m sorry.  I’ll speak with Captain Picard instead.”_

“No need to make another call, Dalen. He’s here.” Jean-Luc could only imagine the look on the doctor’s face at those words but he spoke up nonetheless. “What’s the situation, Doctor?”

_“I know we said 48 hours, but I really need to know by morning what you’d like me to do before Jack deteriorates more.”_

“Doctor, I recommend speaking with Lieutenant Lobo, she’s pregnant with Jack’s child and no doubt would like a say in the life of the father of her child.   My priority right now is Beverly and Wesley. But if you need me to make the decision, you’ll have it by morning.”

_“Understood, Captain.  Oh, and Beverly?  You’re still on leave. I don’t expect you back at your post for at least another week.  Take some time to heal.  Quaice out.”_

Jean-Luc groaned as the connection ended and shook his head. “ _Oh what a tangled web we weave_.”

“Shakespeare?”

“No, actually. Sir Walter Scott.  I thought it was appropriate given the situation.”

“Mm.” Beverly moved back to her side of the bed, a frown on her face. “I’m tired of thinking about Jack and Dalen ruined my good mood.  Can we just go to bed?”  Jean-Luc chuckled. “Of course, my love.”  Jean-Luc slid back down beneath the cover sand pulled Beverly towards him once again.  She rested her head on his chest and wrapped an arm around him. The pleasant and steady thump of his heart combined with his warm arms wrapped around her lulled her to sleep.

Beverly woke up to use the toilet and when she came back to bed, she grinned.  Jean-Luc had rolled over onto his stomach and the blanket had fallen off, leaving his back and backside bare.  Beverly noticed the long red mark still visible from when she scratched him and she studied his arse in the dim light.  With a grin, she got into bed and leaned down and dragged her tongue down his spine before kissed Jean-Luc’s cheeks one at a time.  He stirred, but gave no indication that he had woken up.  Beverly tried again, and this time lightly bit his left cheek.  “Hey!”  Jean-Luc’s eyes opened and he turned his head to one side to see Beverly.  Beverly grinned innocently. “Sorry, did I wake you?”  Beverly leaned over Jean-Luc again and gave him another bite, this time on the right side.  She stuck her tongue out and licked again.  Jean-Luc rutted against the mattress. “Bev...what are you doing?”

She ran her hand over his backside and gave it a light slap. Jean-Luc shuddered under her touch.  “Mm,  nothing dear. Go back to sleep.” 

“Like hell,”  Jean-Luc rolled over and grabbed hold of Beverly and pulled her on top of him.  “See what you’ve done to me?”  Beverly batted her eyelashes.  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”  Jean-Luc growled low in his throat as he kissed her and rolled them over again, so he was on top of her and grinned down at her.  “None at all?” 

“Nope.”

“Well then, let me show you...”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah, the pressure mounts when you get decent reviews....not my best chapter, I'm afraid, but I'm trying to spin it out a bit longer....

Abigal woke up in the arms of her new lover, with the eyes of a five-year-old peering at her from the side of the bed.

“Miz Abby?” 

“Wha? Oh, Wesley! You startled me.  Are you alright?”

“Uh-huh...did Uncle Wally forget to put his pyjamas on last night?  Papa forgot his last night cos he said he had been really tired. ”

“Uhh...”  Abigail was suddenly glad she had thrown on one of Walker’s T-shirts before she went to sleep the night before.  “Why don’t we get you some breakfast?”

“Can I have Kirkpops?”  Wesley asked hopefully.  From the other side of the bed, Walker stirred and said “Sure, kid. Anything you want.”  Wesley’s smile lit up his face. “Yay! Thank you Uncle Wally!”  Wesley ran out of the bedroom and Walker groaned. “No wonder Johnny was thrilled when I offered to take Wes last night. I wonder how many times Wesley has found Johnny and Bev without their clothing on?”   Abigail coloured at the thought of her commanding officer naked.   Walker misinterpreted it as her being embarrassed over Wesley walking in on them and he leaned over and kissed her  “Don’t worry about Wes. He’s a good boy. Takes after...well, his mother, mostly.”

“Hmm.  I’m not sure it was such a good idea for me to have spent the night last night...”

“Why?  Johnny knows I’m seeing you.” 

“He...he does?”

“Well, he is my best friend.”

“He’s also my boss...”

“So?”  Abigail got out of bed and hastily threw on her clothing before Wesley came back in.  “I don’t know, Walker. Maybe this was a bad idea.”  Walker reached out his hand and clasped hers.  “Please don’t say that, Abigail.  I really like you.”

“I like you too, Walker.  But I don’t want Captain Picard to know details about my sex life.”  Walker hung his head. “I’m sorry, Abigail.  I won’t tell him anything else.”

“Thank you. Now, are you going to get dressed or will I have to send Wesley in?”  Walker grumbled. “I’m so glad I don’t have kids and can give this one back to his parents.”

“Hmm. And that’s why I teach...” 

###

 _“Sickbay to Captain Picard.”_  Jean-Luc blearily opened his eyes and pushed Beverly’s hair out of his face.  “Picard here.”

_“Captain, I’ve spoken with Lieutenant Lobo and –“_

“Could you give me a minute, Doctor?”  Jean-Luc slipped Beverly out of his arms  and climbed out of bed after placing a gentle kiss on Beverly’s cheek.  He threw on his dressing gown and went out into the living area, closing the bedroom door behind him.  “Sorry, Doctor.  Beverly is still sleeping and I didn’t want her to be disturbed.”

 _“I understand.  As I was saying, I’ve spoken with Lieutenant Lobo and frankly, Sir, she doesn’t seem to know what to do. I was wondering if you and Commander Keel might be willing to come down and have a conference with her? It would really be helpful if Beverly came along, as well.”_ Jean-Luc sighed. He had really been hoping not to have to deal with Jack anymore.  His opinion was coloured by what his best friend had done to his wife . Never mind the fact that Jean-Luc was reaping the benefits of having Beverly in his life as his lover, he still was mad at Jack for betraying Beverly like that. He took a deep breath before answering.  “Sorry Doctor, Beverly is adamant that she wants nothing to do with Jack’s care and I refuse to push her on the subject.  But I’ll speak to Walker. What time did you want us?”

“ _Would 1000 suit?”_

“It will have to.  Picard out.” Jean-Luc let out a long sigh.  “Picard to Keel.”

_“Morning, Johnny. Wondering where that kid of yours is?”_

“Walker, he’s not my kid.”

“Yet, Johnny. Yet.” 

 _“Good Morning Papa!”_ Jean-Luc smiled, despite telling Walker that Wesley wasn’t his, he really did enjoy being called Papa by the boy, and hoped he could make it official soon. “Morning, Wes. Did you sleep well?”

 _“Uh-huh.  But Uncle Wally forgot his pyjamas an’ Miz Abby gaved me Kirkpops!”_ Jean-Luc mentally filed that bit of information away for later.  “She did, did she?” 

_“Sir, I’d like you to know that the Kirkpops were Commander Keel’s idea...”_

“Thank you, Lieutenant.  Walker, could you meet me outside my quarters in five minutes?  Bev is still sleeping, but I need to speak to you.”

_“Papa, can I come too?”_

“Wes, Mommy is still sleeping. Besides, you have a lesson this morning with Miss Abby, don’t you?”

_“Yeah...but I miss you an mommy.”_

“Wes, you’ll see us this afternoon.”

_“Ok, Papa.”_

_“Johnny? I’ll be out in a minute. Keel out.”_

Jean-Luc decided he should probably put some clothing on before talking to Walker and see if Beverly was still asleep.  He went to the replicator and replicated two cups of coffee before re-entering the bedroom.  He sat one of the cups down on the bedside table next to Beverly and she slowly opened her eyes. “Mmm, good morning.” 

“Morning, my love.  I need to do a few things this morning, will you be alright?”

“I’m sure I can manage.  It’s about Jack, isn’t it?”  Beverly sat up and took a sip of her coffee, relishing in the flavour.

“Yes, but I didn’t want to mention it to you.”

“Thank you, but I’ll be fine.  I need to finish packing up Jack’s belongings.” Jean-Luc frowned. “Are you sure you want to do that alone?” She leaned up for a quick kiss.  “I’ll be fine.”

“Wes wanted to come in to say Good Morning to you, but I wasn’t sure if you wanted him to see his father’s belongings in a heap.”

“On one hand...yes, because Jack is worse than the bubble gum on the bottom of my shoe...but on the other...no, I guess you’re right.  I’ll get the trunk packed this morning and sent away before his morning lesson is finished . Should I send it to his quarters on the _Stargazer_?”

“Might as well.  Even if we wind up shipping his belongings back to his parents, it would be best if everything was together.”  Beverly nodded. “Will I see you for Lunch?”

“Count on it,”  he leaned over to give her another kiss and Beverly reached for the belt on his dressing gown.  He groaned when she slid the garment off his shoulders. “Bev...”

“What?”

“As much as I love this...I need to get dressed to meet Walker.”  Beverly sighed. “Fine.  Go. Love you.”

 “Love you, too.” Jean-Luc pulled on his uniform quickly, regretting not asking Walker to give him time to shower and after giving Beverly another kiss went out into the corridor to meet Walker.

“Morning, Johnny.  That kid...does he always come into your bedroom in the morning?”  Jean-Luc grinned.  “Most mornings.  I take it he startled you?”

“Startled Abigail.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.  “But she doesn’t want me talking to you about her since you are her superior officer.”

“I see.”

“How’s Bev?” 

“She signed the divorce papers yesterday.”  Jean-Luc grimaced.  “I’m pleased, don’t get me wrong, but it’s the situation.  And Jack doesn’t even realise what he’s done to her.”

“No, but now you can be together freely.”

“Hmm.”  Walker turned a sharp look at his best friend. “Isn’t that what you want? To be with  Beverly?”

“You know it is, Walker. I love Beverly more than life itself.   I just...hate what she’s being put through right now. “ Walker reached out and patted Jean-Luc’ arm. “I know, buddy, I know.  So...why are we meeting in the corridor?”

“I didn’t want to wake Bev, though she woke up anyway. Doctor Quaice contacted me.  Lieutenant Lobo doesn’t understand what she’s being asked to do and Quaice asked if we would meet with her.”  Walker nodded. “Must be hard for her. I mean, I guess.”

“I only know that she had an affair with my first officer _under my nose_ and became pregnant.  Apparently, she told Beverly Jack planned on leaving Bev and Wes for her...”

“That bastard!”  Walker punched the wall in frustration. 

“Bastard is mild to what I’ve been calling him in my head. “

“So...we have to make an objective decision about his life, even though he screwed Beverly over?”  Jean-Luc nodded. “That’s the gist of it.”

“Christ.”

“You can say that again.”  Jean-Luc tugged his uniform down and straightened his back. “Right.  We are meeting with Lobo and Quaice at 10.  It’s 0700 right now.  I’m going to check in on the _Stargazer_ and give one more look in Jack’s quarters for any papers that might be useful.  Want to help?” 

“Sure, but can we grab breakfast first?  Those Kirkpops are disgusting.” Jean-Luc chuckled at his friend.  “Not the worst thing Wesley eats, I assure you.  By the way, how did you manage to get here?”

“I may have called in a favour a certain admiral owes me...”

“Oh, Walker, you _didn’t_.”  Walker just grinned at his friend and headed for the Promenade and breakfast.

When they entered Jack’s quarters, Walker pointed to the stack of chips on the desk.  “I only got through a few of those before I discovered the baby, maybe we should check the rest?”

“Good thinking.” Jean-Luc picked up  two PADDs and passed one to Walker.  “We’ll just divide and conquer.”

Jean-Luc divided the chips he was looking at into a work and a personal pile as he viewed them and was surprised to find a few chips containing old letters from Beverly.  He debated about throwing those away, but thought better of it. Perhaps Jack should be reminded of what he lost.

The two friends fell into silence as they each viewed files on the assorted chips Jack had kept in his desk.  Finding nothing else of worth, they moved on to checking Jack’s bedroom for any spare data chips they might have missed.  The small dish on top of Jack’s dresser contained a few, though there was nothing of note stored on them.  The real jackpot was in his bedside table.

“Geez.   I mean, at least he archived some of his files onto data chips, but couldn’t he have at least labelled them?”  Walker flipped a chip over in his hand as if it were a coin.  “I bet half of this stuff is irrelevant. Why are we doing this again?”  Jean-Luc sighed and sat down on Jack’s bed.  “Because he’s our best friend and we want to make sure we make the right decision for him based on what he would want.”

“Right.”  Walker inserted the chip he had been playing with and gave it a cursory view.  Beverly’s name stood out on the document, so Walker scrutinised it more.  “Fuck!” 

_“Language, Walker!”_

“Sorry, Johnny.  You’re really not going to like this....look at what I found.”  Walker passed the PADD over to Jean-Luc who took one look and let out an explicative of his own.  “These divorce papers....they’re dated only six months after their wedding.  What the hell, Jack?” 

“Wasn’t Beverly already pregnant with Wesley?”

“Yep.”

“That little....ugh, I can’t say the words I want to say right now, Johnny.” Walker balled his hands into fists. “If he wasn’t unconscious already...”

“I know.”

“Can we go pull the plug on him now?” Walker looked hopefully at his best friend.

“Don’t I wish, Walker.  And now what do I do? Do I tell Beverly what we just found ?”

“Don’t.  Look, I’ll tell her about the divorce papers.  She can beat up on me for once instead of you and you can swoop in to comfort her, all right?” 

“We should tell her together.”  Walker pocketed the chip.  “Should we go back now?”  Jean-Luc sighed. “No time like the present.”

Jean-Luc practically dragged his feet along the corridors as he returned to his and Beverly’s quarters with Walker by his side.  How much heartbreak could Beverly handle before she simply broke beyond repair?  He knew he would be there to pick up the pieces and he would do whatever Beverly needed him to do, even if it meant cutting all ties with his best friend.  Jean-Luc contemplated what he would do about a First Officer, assuming Jack managed to wake up from his coma and was entirely back to normal. 

“Hey, Walker, how would you like to be my First Officer?”

“Been there, done that, Johnny.” 

“True, but if Beverly and Wes move with me onto the _Stargazer_ , Lieutenant Yugen will come with them.”  Walker grinned.  “In that case, Johnny, you might have yourself a new First Officer.”

Jean-Luc turned and headed for the Promenade instead of his quarters. “Where are you going?”

“I thought I might bring Bev some flowers.” 

“Smart thinking. Flowers might soften the blow we’re about to deliver. Maybe _I_ should be the one getting her the flowers.”  Jean-Luc rolled his eyes and led the way to the florist. 

They came away with a delicate Vulcan orchid, Walker grumbling about how many credits he had to fork over for the plant.  When they arrived back at Jean-Luc’s quarters, Walker presented the flower pot to Beverly with a flourish. “For you, my dear.”  Jean-Luc elbowed his friend. “Oi, get your own fiancée.”  Jean-Luc leaned in to greet Beverly with a kiss. “Fiancée?  When did that happen? “ 

“Last night,”  Bevely proudly held out her finger to Walker. “Of course, he still owes me an amazing proposal.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.  “I see.”

“Well, all you did was hand me the ring, you didn’t actually ask.”

“I thought ‘I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you’ counted?”  Beverly grinned at her fiancé . “Nope. I want romance.”  Beverly sat the potted plant down on her desk and Jean-Luc noticed the trunk full of Jack’s belongings was now closed and ready to go.  He reached for Beverly’s hand and brought her over to the sofa.  Sitting down, he pulled her down onto his lap and buried his face in her hair. “My love, Walker and I found something else out this morning.  I don’t want it to cause you pain, but you should know.”  Beverly stiffened in his arms, and Walker headed over to the small cabinet where he knew the booze was.  “Is it too early for a whisky? I feel like we need whisky.” He found three small glasses and poured them each a finger of the amber liquid.  Beverly stared down into her glass. “That bad that I need alcohol, is it?”

Jean-Luc tightened his grip on Beverly and Walker knelt down in front of her to take her hands in his.  Beverly whimpered.  Jean-Luc dipped his head down and gently kissed her ear before whispering “I love you.  I always have, and I always will.”  She relaxed a little but kept her eyes on Walker’s.  “Out with it, Wally.”

“Er...”

“Wally...just tell me.”

“I...uhm...Bev, I found divorce papers.  Jack was going to divorce you.”

“Oh. Well, then I guess Annisyn was right.”

“Not entirely,”  Walker glanced over at Jean-Luc who still had his arms around Beverly.  Beverly glanced between the two men. “What?”

“Beverly, my love. The date on the papers Walker found was six months after your wedding.”  Beverly’s face paled.  “That slimy bastard.  That was when I told him I was pregnant.” 

“I’m so sorry, my love. I really am.  But we thought you needed to know.”  She nodded as tears started to fall from her eyes.  Jean-Luc reached up and gently wiped her tears away with his thumb and he leaned in to kiss her lightly.  Beverly deepened the kiss and grabbed fistfuls of Jean-Luc’s jacket.  When they broke apart, she rested her forehead against his and Walker whistled from his spot opposite the couple. “Would you two like to be alone?”

Beverly shot a glare at Walker. “What time are you meeting Annisyn?” 

“Ten, why?”

“Computer: Time?”

“ _The time is 0914.”_

“Wally?  Get out.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens....

Walker made his way back to the _Stargazer_ to continue to look in Jack’s quarters when he ran into Jean-Luc’s First Officer, Gilaad Ben Zoma.  Ben Zoma had been serving as Second Officer when Walker was originally Jean-Luc’s First Officer, so it was good to see the man again.  Which reminded Walker of Jean-Luc’s offer to become his First again. 

“Gilaad!  Good to see you. How’s the _Stargazer_ and Johnny treating you?” 

“Walker.  Good to see you too.  Actually, I’ve been offered a command of my own.  It’s nothing as large as the _Stargazer_ , but I have accepted.  If it wasn’t for Jack’s accident, I would be on my way to Starbase four four two right now. But Starfleet have put off my reassignment for now.” Walker nodded. At least now he knew why Jean-Luc had asked him to be First Officer again. He decided to tell his old friend.  “Ah, well, the good news for you is good old Johnny has asked me to fill in as his First Officer once again. You won’t have to wait long for your own command.  And, congratulations, Captain.”

Gilaad shook his head. “Oh, I’m not getting promoted.  I’m just going to command a small scientific vessel.” 

“Still, step up the ladder, eh?” 

“Something like that. How’s Jack?”  Walker grimaced.  He filled Gilaad in on everything and when he was done, Gilaad was shocked. “I’m stunned. Honestly.  We all knew Lobo had become pregnant, but I don’t think any of us suspected it was Jack.  Oh, I had seen Jack flirting with her before she became pregnant, but Jack flirting wasn’t really anything new, was it?”  Walker shook his head.  Jack had always been a flirt.  “Er...do you remember who _else_ Jack flirted with?”

“I’m sorry, Walker, I didn’t keep an account.”

“No matter.  Right, we’re meeting with Quaice in forty-five minutes, I better see if I can find anything else. When does the _Stargazer_ leave?”

“This afternoon at 1600, but only for a quick patrol.  We can’t go too far without our Captain.”

“No, I suppose not.”  Walker and Gilaad bid goodbye to each other and Walker continued to Jack’s quarters, but not before contacting Quaice and moving their meeting to 1400.  Walker then left a time-delayed message for Jean-Luc that would be delivered ten minutes before they were due for their  original meeting . He grinned to himself.  _Looks like Johnny and Bev get some extra time together this morning._

Jean-Luc was stepping out of the shower when he heard the chime go off for a message.  Frowning, he exited the bathroom and made his way over to the console on Beverly’s desk. 

 _“Johnny. Good news. I managed to move our meeting to 1400.  Enjoy your time with Bev.  Keel out.”_  Jean-Luc grinned and went back into the bedroom.  Beverly was just starting to get dressed when Jean-Luc grabbed her around the waist and kissed her.  “Walker moved our meeting to 1400.  We have the whole morning and early afternoon together.”  Beverly wound her arms around his neck. “Are you sure the Captain doesn’t have any other duties to attend to?”

“Positive.  Why don’t we take Wesley to the arboretum and have a picnic lunch today?”  Beverly grinned. “A free day and you want to spend it with my son?” 

“Well...I’d love to stay in bed with his mother, but I know Wesley would enjoy spending time with us.”  Beverly leaned up and gave Jean-Luc a kiss. “And this is why you’re going to be an amazing  father to Wes.  I just want to check on a few patients of mine first.” 

“In Sickbay?”  Beverly sheepishly grinned. “I had planned to go with you when you went for your meeting at 10.”  Jean-Luc frowned. “Bev, you’re on compassionate leave.” 

“Jack’s not my husband anymore. I should be back at work.”  Jean-Luc rubbed her arm affectionately. “Well, if you’re sure. I’ll wait for Wes and then we’ll make a picnic and meet you at Sickbay around noon?”    

“Sounds good.” Beverly gathered her lab coat and comm badge before heading to Sickbay with a smile on her face. 

###

Walker continued to search through all of Jack’s data chips and PADDs, although after the revelations they already found, he really wasn’t sure he wanted to find anything else.  Walker frowned as he found another set of divorce papers dated twenty years ago, right around the time Walker, Jack, and Jean-Luc had all began serving together on the _Stargazer_.  Jean-Luc and Walker had gone to the Academy together and had been friends right away, and Jack was the son of a friend of Walker’s parents so he had taken the slightly younger man under his wing and had convinced Jean-Luc to put him on his ship when Jean-Luc had appointed Walker as his First Officer.  The three of them had become best friends quickly...but Jack had never mentioned being married or divorced.  Walker was surprised his mother hadn’t mentioned Jack being married or divorced either, especially when she had been present for Beverly and Jack’s wedding.

 Walker wondered if Beverly even knew about Jack’s previous marriage.  After being the bearer of bad news twice, Walker really wasn’t sure if he wanted to tell her about this.  Walker looked at the name of Jack’s ex-wife but didn’t recognize her name and after searching through Starfleet found out she wasn’t enlisted under Crusher, and her maiden name hadn’t been on the papers so she might have even been a civilian.

 “Keel to Ben Zoma.”

_“Ben Zoma here.”_

“Gilaad, could you join me in Jack’s quarters?” 

_“Of course.  I’ll be there shortly. Ben Zoma out.”_

When Gilaad arrived, Walker showed him the divorce papers.  “Gilaad, did Jack ever mention being married back then?” 

“Not to my knowledge.  What’s her name?”  Walker shrugged. “Her last name isn’t on here, only a first. Suzanne.”

“You checked Starfleet records for Suzanne Crusher?” Walker nodded. “No one by that name, so I assume she must have been a civilian or went back to her maiden name.” 

“I’m sorry, Walker. I wish I could help.”

“It’s fine, Gilaad.  We don’t really need to know, I’m just curious.”

Gilaad nodded and left  Walker alone in Jack’s quarters once again.  Walker picked up another chip.  _I really don’t want to check anymore chips. What else am I going to find out about Jack?  Did Jean-Luc and I even know him as well as we thought we had?_

###

Jean-Luc carried a picnic basket in one hand and had Wesley’s hand in his other hand as they rounded the corner near Sickbay.  When they entered, Wesley ran straight to his mother’s office and didn’t even see Jack in the small room behind Doctor Quaice’s office.  Jean-Luc nodded to the doctor before trailing after Wesley. 

“Mommy! Mommy! We’re going on a pick a nick!”  Beverly grinned as Jean-Luc entered her office. “In Sickbay?” Wesley shook his head.  “Noooooooooooo.  Papa said we can go to the awb....” Wesley scrunched his face up while he tried to remember the word. “Awb....er....eat...them?”  Jean-Luc chuckled. “Close enough, Wes. Arboretum.”  Jean-Luc leaned over and gave Beverly a quick peck on the lips in greeting.  “Hello, my love.  Have you managed to get anything done this morning?”

“ A little.  But Dalen insists I am still on compassionate leave, so he wouldn’t let me do much.”  Beverly tried to peek in the top of the basket. “No peeking, Mommy!”  Wesley wiggled his finger at her.  “It’s a surprise!” 

“Ah,”  Beverly removed her lab coat and draped it over her chair. “Shall we?”  Beverly threaded her arm through Jean-Luc’s and Wesley held onto her free hand and the small quasi-family made their way to the base’s arboretum. 

The arboretum on Starbase 32 was impressive – as large as Hyde Park in London – and in addition to containing plant species from all over the galaxy, it also contained sculptures and a children’s area, complete with a playground.  Wesley dropped his mother’s hand and made a beeline for the monkey bars.  “Be careful, Wes!”

“’Kay, Mommy.”

Jean-Luc found a tree to spread out a tartan blanket under.  He sat with his back against the tree and tugged Beverly down between his legs.  She laughed as she fell against him and turned her head to capture his lips in a kiss.  Jean-Luc’s eyebrows rose.  “Kissing in public, Bev? “  Beverly spoke against his lips. “I’m not married anymore.  And I want to kiss you.” She kissed him again and Jean-Luc tightened his arms around her. “Well, as long as you don’t mind being seen kissing an old man in public.”

“You’re not old.”

“I’m nearly fifty.”

“Not for another few years!  And I don’t care. I love you.”

“I love you too.”  Jean-Luc looked over at Wesley who was playing with some of the other children on the monkey bars and grinned. “Looks like we may have lost Wes.” 

“He’ll come back when he’s hungry.” 

Jean-Luc reluctantly let go of Beverly’s waist to unpack the picnic.  Beverly grinned when she saw the wine glasses and bottle of wine.  “Obviously, Wesley didn’t pick that.”  Jean-Luc scoffed. “Hardly.  There’s a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in there, a banana, a Vulcan pear, and some milk for Wes.  His choices.  But for us....a bottle of wine, a crusty baguette, some lunchmeat, and cheese.”

“Hmm. Very French of you.”  Jean-Luc tilted the bottle so Beverly could read the label. “And from your vineyard as well. You are spoiling me.” 

“Always, my love.”   Jean-Luc uncorked the bottle and poured their glasses and passed one to Beverly.  “What shall we toast?”  Beverly thought about it for a minute. “To love. And finally being with the person you are supposed to.” 

“Mm. To love.  I love you, Beverly Howard.”  He clinked his glass against hers and they both smiled as they sipped at their wine.  Beverly leaned back on Jean-Luc’s chest and his free hand came to circle her waist as they watched Wes playing with his friends.  “Mm.  This is nice, Jean-Luc. “  Jean-Luc put his glass down so he could wrap both arms around Beverly and gently kissed her ear. “Indeed.” 

Beverly and Jean-Luc had finished their lunch and were sipping on second glasses of wine when Wesley finally came back.  “I’m hungry.”

“Oh are you?” Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows at the five-year-old.  “Do you think you should have eaten with us?” 

“I’m sowwy....but Sai was here an I wanted to play with her!” 

“I see.  Next time, please ask first.  I have to be at a meeting with Uncle Wally this afternoon and hoped to spend time with you first.”  Wesley frowned. “Does this mean you won’t push me on the swings?”

“Eat your lunch, then we’ll see if we have time.” 

“’Kay. “  Wesley dug into his sandwich with gusto. Beverly smiled at their interaction.  Jean-Luc had always been good with Wesley, better than Jack had ever been...and Jean-Luc had probably visited more before Jack’s accident.  Beverly thought back on her marriage with Jack.  It really had been doomed to fail from the minute she had told him she was pregnant.  She remembered how he had been so angry with her that her birth control implant had failed...it hadn’t been her fault.  The doctor had determined that she had received one from a faulty batch.  Naturally, when Jack had finally said he would marry her, Beverly thought it was the right idea...but he had barely been present during her pregnancy and after Wes was born. It was almost like he had enjoyed the thrill of dating more than actually being with her.  She wouldn’t trade Wesley for the world though.  She just wished Jean-Luc had been Wesley’s birth father.

 She toyed with her ring and mused about having a second child.  She didn’t want to rush into anything with Jean-Luc, but she would be lying to herself if she said didn’t want to get pregnant soon.  But she also wanted to be married before getting pregnant this time, so she supposed she and Jean-Luc would have a lot to talk about...and soon.  Beverly didn’t know how much longer Jean-Luc would be able to stay at the base, or if he had been serious about her and Wesley moving onto the _Stargazer_.  Naturally, Beverly was thrilled at the prospect of being a Junior Medical Officer on a starship, and she knew Wesley would love living on a ship.

“Hey, you’re a million miles away,”  Jean-Luc brushed her hair back from her face and leaned over to kiss her.  Wesley scrunched up his nose. “You kiss a lot.”

“Ah, Wes, it’s because I simply love your mother very much and one way to show her my love is to kiss her.”

“Oh.  How come I only get kissed at bedtime?” Jean-Luc chuckled and held out his free arm.  “Come here, my boy.”  When Wesley moved closer, Jean-Luc grabbed the boy and pulled him against his shoulder.  He leaned over and gave Wesley a kiss on his forhead  before tickling his ribs.  Wesley giggled.  “Papa!” 

“Wes, my boy, I love you.”

“As much as you love Mommy?”  Jean-Luc glanced down at Beverly, who was still sitting between his legs.  Beverly fluttered her eyelashes playfully. “Errr...”

“Wesley, Mommies and Daddies love each other differently than they love their children.” 

“Oh. But Mommy, Daddy doesn’t love me. Only Papa loves me.”  Jean-Luc frowned.  “Wes, where did you get that idea?”  Wesley looked down at the ground. “Daddy never says he loves me.” 

“I...I see. Wesley, I’m sure your Daddy loves you. He’d be crazy not to.” 

“Papa?”

“Yes, Wes?”

“I love you too.”  Wesley wrapped his arms around Jean-Luc’s neck.  Beverly could see a few tears threatening to fall from Jean-Luc’s eyes and truthfully she was a little tearful herself.  She wiped at her eye and Jean-Luc shot her a smile and mouthed “I love you.”  Beverly turned sideways in Jean-Luc’s lap and wrapped an arm around his waist to join the embrace.  Being with Jean-Luc was definitely the right idea.

###

“Jesus wept.  Jackie...how do you have so many secrets from us?”  Walker was still scanning for documents in his room.  To his immense shock, he discovered that Jack and Suzanne had a child together.  It had been a girl, and she was now 24, but her name wasn’t mentioned anywhere and since Walker knew there were no other Crushers serving in Starfleet, he had reached a dead end on locating his daughter and ex.  On one hand, it seemed as though Jack hadn’t been in his daughter’s life since his divorce from Suzanne, but on the other hand, Walker felt as though he needed to contact her to let her know about her father as she would technically be Jack’s closest relative now that Beverly had divorced him.  He sighed.  “Just a name Jackie boy. You couldn’t even have anything with your own daughter’s name on it?”  _I really can’t believe this.  Jack has a daughter only five years younger than Beverly.  And we never knew.  Or at least, Beverly never mentioned it to us and I’m sure if Jean-Luc had known he would have told me.  Oh, Jackie. What are we going to do with you?_

Walker glanced at the time and sighed. 

“Keel to Picard.”

 _“Go ahead, Walker.”_ Walker could hear children squealing in the background and guessed that Jean-Luc had taken Wesley to the arboretum to play. 

“Johnny, can I speak with you before we go in to see Quaice and Lobo?”

_“Sure.  Is everything okay? Have you found anything else?”_

“Oh, I found something, alright.”

_“I’ll meet you in my Ready Room on the Stargazer in twenty minutes.  Picard out.”_

Walker was going to give himself fifteen more minutes in Jacks’s quarters. He accessed another chip. This one was stardated 4 years ago and confirmed payment of fees to Starfleet Academy for “A Student”.  The student’s name wasn’t on the notice, but Walker had a pretty good idea Jack must have paid for his daughter’s extra fees. The date on the letter would fit if his daughter was now 24.  Walker wondered if his 24-yr-old girlfriend knew the girl, though he supposed if she had known about Jack having a daughter she would have mentioned it before.   But perhaps she knew someone who was having their studies subsidised by their estranged father.  He decided he would ask her about it later that night.

He gathered the relevant chips and cleaned up Jack’s quarters before leaving for Jean-Luc’s ready room.  He hoped this would be the last surprise of Jack’s they would discover. 

###

Jean-Luc was fuming after he spoke with Walker. Not at Walker....oh no. His fury was aimed at the best friend laying unconscious on a biobed. He knew Beverly didn’t know about Suzanne or the daughter, but knew he needed to tell her...and Lobo needed to be made aware, too.  It also made Jean-Luc reflect on his prior relationships.  When he was at the Academy, he had slept with basically anyone who had been willing...and then he lost his heart in a fight with a Nausicaan, and it changed his outlook.  In the past twenty years, he had only had one relationship other than Beverly, and she had been his mother’s nurse.  Jean-Luc knew he had not gotten any of the women in his past pregnant because not only did Jean-Luc have  a suppressor implant, but he always used the old fashioned condom – “Johnny uses Johnnys” became a bit of a joke between him and Walker. 

He scrubbed his face and rested his elbows on his desk and looked at his best friend. “Walker, what are we going to do? I feel like we’re in one of those holo soap operas.”

“Sure feels like it, Johnny. Look,  Abigail is twenty-four, so I thought I might ask her if she knew of anyone who might  have mentioned having an absent father....you never know. We might locate her.  In the meantime....what do we do?”

“I don’t know.  I guess we ask Quaice to hold off a little longer on surgery if that’s possible...speaking of, I had better go.  I don’t want to tell Quaice and Lobo before I speak to Beverly. “

“Do you want me to come along?”

“Hmm. Want to take Wes for an ice cream so I can talk to Bev alone?”

“Sure.”

###

Beverly stared at her husband-to-be.  “Jack had been married before me?  And has a daughter who’s twenty-four?!” Jean-Luc sighed and reached out for Beverly, but she turned away and crossed her arms. “Jean-Luc, you had better swear that you didn’t know any of this.”

“Beverly, my love...I swear.  Please, if I had known...I’d have made sure he told you when you started dating.  Please...believe me?”  He reached out for Beverly’s shoulder and gently turned her around.  She searched his eyes.

“I...” she reached out for him and then dropped her arms to her side. “I’m sorry, Jean-Luc.  It’s just that you’ve been Jack’s best friend for twenty years. He told me he told you everything....”

“I thought he told me everything too. Then again, I never told him I was in love with you.” Beverly smiled.  That would have been an interesting conversation to say the least. 

“Does Annisyn know?”

“No.  I wanted to tell you first.”

“Thank you.  Jean-Luc?”  Beverly took a deep breath before continuing.  “Promise me you have no secrets like this?  In ten years a woman isn’t going to show up on our doorstep and tell us you’re her father? Or a man? Not in five, ten, fifteen, or twenty?”  Beverly’s lip trembled. Jean-Luc drew Beverly into his arms and gave her a gentle kiss.  “Oh my love.  No. I promise.  The only children I will ever have are the ones I will have with you.  Including Wesley.”  Beverly relaxed in his embrace.  “I’m sorry I had to ask.”  Jean-Luc kissed Beverly once more.  “I understand.  I know this has been a shock.”

“And there’s a daughter around my age!  Jean-Luc...I’m....I’m a step-mother.  Or ex-step-mother?  Wesley has a half sister....and Jack never told me.  I just don’t  understand how he hid all this from me....or why.”

“I don’t know, Bev.  I’m so sorry.”

“So now what happens to Jack?”

“I wanted to tell you before we spoke to Quaice.  I suppose if his surgery can be put off while we try to find this daughter, it will..or we’ll have to see what the daughter says.”  Jean-Luc sighed.  “What a mess.”

###

Abigail placed her hands on Walker’s shoulder’s to ease his tension. “So, now what will happen with Commander Crusher?”

“Well, Doctor Quaice said that he thought he could give us a few days to try to track down his daughter, but...we don’t have any leads to go on.  She should be about your age.  You don’t by any chance know anyone you attended the Academy with who received a stipend from their father?”  Abigail laughed. “Only nearly everyone.  Most of us received money from our parents for sundry items and things not covered by Starfleet.  You should remember that.” 

“Hmm. True. Well, did you meet any of your friend’s mothers?”

“A few, why?”

“Know any that were named Suzanne?” Abigail’s eyes went wide.  “Er....Uhm...My mother’s name is Suzanne....”


	11. Chapter 11

“Well, I’m sure it must be a common name.”  Walker turned to look at his girlfriend. 

“I never knew my father.  Mom told me he didn’t want to be in my life, but he wanted to help cover my expenses.  I don’t even know his name.” Abigail studied her hands and refused to meet her boyfriend’s eyes.

Walker started to get nervous. What if his girlfriend was his best friend’s daughter?  That ranked up there with dating your friend’s sister...you really shouldn’t.  He sighed, because he really had started to fall for the girl and it would be hard to break things off with her if she was.  He swallowed before speaking. “And you...you know nothing about your father?”  Abigail shook her head.  “I mean, I know he was Starfleet.” Walker cringed. “He left Mom when I was little. Told her he was accepting a deep space assignment and didn’t want to be tied down.  So Mom went back to her maiden name and gave me her maiden name . I think that was why I was so willing to help out Doctor Howard...Wesley’s situation mirrored mine....Oh my god, what if Wesley is my little brother?” Abigail began to panic. “Doctor Howard won’t want me to be his teacher anymore, and Captain Picard won’t recommend me for the new Galaxy ships...and....you...well,  I don’t suppose you’ll want to date your best friend’s kid...”

“I....”

“No, don’t say anything Wally.  I was...I was starting to fall in love with you.”  Tears pricked at her eyes and she hastily wiped them away.  “I guess I had better go.”  Abigail moved towards the door, but Walker was fast and reached for her hand. 

“Abigail...no.  Look,” he sighed, “If you are Jack’s daughter, it will be hard for us, but I’m starting to fall pretty hard for you, too.  I know we have a large age gap, but if Johnny, who is the oldest forty-eight-year-old I know, can make it work with Beverly, then I think we might have a fighting chance.  And....you might _not_ be Jack’s kid.  It could all be a coincidence.”

“Maybe.  Oh God, Wally!  Am I going to be the one who has to make decisions about Commander Crusher?  What about Annisyn?  Is she my step-mother?  Is Doctor Howard?  Am I going to have to call the Captain Dad?!”  Walker drew Abigail into his arms to sooth her.

“First of all, No.  Johnny will still be your captain.  He might be your ex-step-mother’s husband one day, but he won’t be your step-father.  Secondly, Beverly filed for a divorce from Jack, so technically...she’s not your step-mother anymore. Third... I promise not to leave you, alright?  We’ll get this all figured out.  And if you are Jack’s daughter...well, Johnny and I will help you, alright?”  Abigail slowly nodded.  “So, how do we find out?”

“Well, ah, I guess we talk to Johnny and Bev.  Beverly could probably run a DNA test between you and Wesley to see if you share a father.”  Abigail smiled. “Will the Captain become my Uncle Johnny?”  Walker grinned. “I’d love to hear you call him that. Although, a little awkward since we’re dating.” 

“I should...I should call my mom.  Can I use your comm?”

“Sure, sweetheart.  Why don’t I get you something to drink.  Tea?  Hot chocolate?”  He gently rubbed Abigail’s back.  “I know this is rough on you.”

“Hot chocolate, please.”

Abigail sat down at Walker’s console and punched in the alpha-numeric code that would reach her mother.  When her mother’s face filled the screen, her mother knew something was wrong. “ _Abigail, darling, are you alright?_ ”

“No, Mom,” she sniffed.

“ _It’s not that boyfriend of yours, is it?”_   Abigail laughed.  “No, it’s not him.”  Walker brought over her cup of hot chocolate and did a double take when he saw the woman on the screen. “Suz?” 

“ _Walker?  When Abby told me her boyfriend was older and his name was Walker, I thought she said Walter!  So...you’re the one dating my daughter, eh?_ ”

“Guilty, Suz.”  Abigail looked between the image of her mother and her boyfriend standing next to her. “Uhm...you two...know each other?” 

“ _Darling, Walker lived next door to me growing up.”_

“I see.  Wally?”

“Honestly, love, I had forgotten Suz’s last name.  Otherwise, I would have asked you sooner.”

“ _Well, I suppose if my daughter was going to fall for an older man, I’d rather it be someone I know. But Wally, hurt her and I hurt you. Understood?_ ”  Walker nodded. “ _But I don’t think that’s why you called me, is it?_ ”

“No, Mom.  Uhm...Mom?  Who is my father?”  A dark look crossed Suzanne’s face.  “Mom it’s...important.”

“ _Abigail...We don’t talk about your father.”_  

“I...I know, Mom.  But it’s really important.  Uhm...Wally?” 

“Yes, Love?”  Suzanne smiled.  As much as she might not have approved of the large age gap when her daughter told her her boyfriend was only a few years older than her mother, Suzanne could tell Walker cared deeply for her daughter...she just hoped he still would. 

“Wally, could you....give me a few minutes with Mom?”

“Of course.  If you need me, I’ll be in the bedroom.” Walker retreated to his bedroom  and started to put the pieces together.  He had grown up next to Suzanne Yugen and while they had never dated, they had been friends.  Walker briefly remembered Suzanne dating Jack, but then he had gone off to the Academy and hadn’t thought about his childhood friends much until Jack showed up at the Academy for his entrance exams.  But Walker didn’t remember Jack telling him he was still dating Suzanne. 

Jack had to have known when Abby came on board the _Stargazer_  that she was his daughter...he surely would have recognized her name...and now that Walker thought about it, Abigail did look like her mother.  Jack just served with his daughter under him – for Walker was now fairly certain Abigail was going to turn out to be Jack’s daughter – and never told her he was her father?  Walker wondered if Jack would pull the same thing on Wesley in 20 years time if Wesley joined Starfleet as Wesley Howard or Wesley Picard.  Walker grinned. Wesley Picard had a nice ring to it, and it would probably hurt Jack to know his son was a Picard.

 Walker wasn’t sure how Beverly would react to learning that her son’s tutor was actually his half –sister, if what Walker suspected was true.  He tapped out a message to Jean-Luc: _Interesting twist.  Abby might be Jack’s daughter._

Surprisingly, a message arrived back quickly.  _I’ll talk to Beverly._

Walker felt increasingly bad for Beverly, but at least she had Jean-Luc.  Walker remembered the day he introduced Jack and Jean-Luc to Beverly.  His younger sister was a classmate of Beverly’s and had told Walker about the redhead.  At the time, Walker hadn’t been looking for a relationship, but he had liked the girl and decided to introduce her to his best friends.  Unfortunately, Jean-Luc had skipped out on dinner the night he introduced her to Jack, and Jack had already asked her out by the time Jean-Luc finally got a chance to meet the cadet. 

Of course, Walker could see that Jean-Luc had instantly fallen for the girl, but there was nothing he could do as Jack was smitten and it had appeared as though Beverly had been, too.  When Beverly had announced that she was pregnant, Jack had been upset, but he had asked Beverly to marry him as that was “the right thing to do”.  Of course, both Walker and Jean-Luc had stood up at the wedding sharing the duties of Best Man...and Walker had watched Jean-Luc’s heart break as Beverly spoke her vows to Jack. 

Walker had expected Jack to have been excited for his child, but Jack returned to the _Stargazer_ , and from talking with Beverly, he hadn’t been around much during her pregnancy or Wesley’s early life.  Walker had gone to visit Beverly shortly after Wes’ birth and remembered her crying on his shoulder because Jack still hadn’t come to see them, even though Jean-Luc had arranged for the ship to be docked at the base.  In fact, Beverly had seen Jean-Luc  and Jean-Luc had held baby Wesley but not her husband.  Of course, Beverly hadn’t admitted it to Jean-Luc, but she had no trouble confiding in Walker. 

Walker wondered what Jack had been doing, but decided he really didn’t want to know.  Over the course of Wesley’s life so far, Walker had witnessed Beverly fall in love with Jean-Luc while she was trying to maintain her marriage and relationship with Jack.  Walker knew how devastated Beverly had been when Jack told her he hadn’t wanted to have another child with her...and perhaps that was the catalyst she had needed to finally draw up the divorce papers Walker had been trying to convince her to do since Wesley was a baby.  Walker couldn’t express how happy he was to see her with Jean-Luc now.  Jean-Luc would take care of her, and Walker could...could what ? It was too early in his relationship with Abigail to contemplate marriage, but he had to admit, he was falling in love with the younger woman.  But what he would do if she was Jack’s child, he had no idea.

There was a soft knock on his door and it slid open to reveal the person he had just been thinking about.  “Abby, are you alright?”

“Uhm...Mom wants....Mom wants to talk to you.  Jack...” her voice caught in her throat.  “Jack Crusher is my father.”  Walker’s heart sunk.  He walked over to Abigail and placed a kiss on her forehead.  “Ab, this doesn’t change anything between us, alright?  It’s...going to be hard for me, but I won’t leave you.”  Abby nodded.  “Why don’t you take a bath and relax?  I’ll be in after I’m done talking to your mom, alright?”  She nodded again and smiled.  Walker really was good to her, and she was definitely falling in love with him.

Walker sat down in front of the console and eyed the image of his childhood friend. “Suz, why didn’t you ever tell me?”

_“I thought you knew Jack and I were dating...when you missed the wedding, I just assumed you had been on assignment.”_

“I wasn’t invited. “

 _“Oh. Your parents were there, though. I was..god Walker, I was nineteen.  Nineteen and pregnant and I didn’t know what to do.  My father...well, he insisted that Jack had to marry me.  When Abigail was born, I felt like my world was complete....but Jack was still at the Academy and didn’t want to live in married housing and then he got his first assignment and when he came back from that, he got the offer to go on the_ Stargazer _and told me he didn’t want to be married to me anymore. I was devastated.  His only promise he made was to support Abigail financially, but he didn’t want to see her so I changed our name back to Yugen and I just got on with my life.  I’m sorry you never knew.”_

Walker shook his head. “It wasn’t your fault. Jack never told us about you or Abigail.  Beverly didn’t even know.”

“ _Beverly?  Oh, Doctor Howard?”_ Walker nodded. “This is why it’s complicated.  Beverly is...was...Jack’s wife for the past six years.  They have a son, the boy Abigail has been working with.  Jack got another girl pregnant so Beverly filed for divorce and she’s with Jean-Luc now.”

_“Abigail’s Captain?”_

“Yeah.”

_“Oh, this is complicated.  Walker, do you think I should come to the base?”_

“Does Abby want you here?” 

_“I think she needs me.”_

“You’re probably right.  I’ll make arrangements for you to have some quarters....I don’t think you want to stay with me, do you?”

_“Not if my daughter is sleeping with you....Wally, that’s just a little awkward, don’t you think.”_

“You think it’s awkward ? I just found out the girl I’m falling in love with is not only the daughter of my childhood friend, but the daughter of one of my best friends, who is a rat bastard I’d like to pull the plug on, but now I can’t since he’s Abigail’s father!”

 _“Falling in love?”_  Walker blushed. “Did I say that?  Er...yeah.  We’ve only been dating for a short time, but Suz, you have an amazing daughter.  You raised her well.  By the way,  Jean-Luc and I have been searching for any kind of Living Will or directive Jack might have written up expressing his wishes if he was being kept alive by machines. I know you got divorced twenty years ago, but you wouldn’t happen to know if he has one, would you?”

_“Oh gosh, Wally.  I do remember we had a discussion about it when I was pregnant with Abigail.  I don’t know if he ever finalised anything.”_

“Do you remember what he said?”

“ _He wanted me to make sure they tried to save him.  That’s all I remember.”_ Walker sighed. “Well, that’s a help.  I suppose we’ll have to have Doctor Quaice schedule the surgery to try to alieviate the pressure on his brain.” Suzanne nodded. _“ Wally, you go take care of that daughter of mine. I’ll let you both know when I will arrive.”_

“See you soon.  Keel out.”  Walker deactivated the call and sat back in his seat. _What was it Jean-Luc had said the other day? Something about a tangled web....you can say that again._

“Keel to Picard.”

“ _Go ahead, Walker.”_

“Johnny, are you alone?”

_“I’m with Bev.  We just put Wesley to bed.”_

“Well, I suppose Beverly needs to hear this too.  Abigail is Jack’s daughter.”  He could hear Beverly’s gasp. 

 _“I see.  Take care of her tonight. We’ll all have to sit down in the morning and talk.”_ Beverly added her thoughts. “ _Wally, is she alright? I can come over if you think she needs to talk.”_

“She will be, Bev.  And thanks. I’ll tell her to call you if she needs you. We’ll be over for Breakfast?”  Jean-Luc nodded, then realised Walker couldn’t see his nod. _“0700?”_

“See you then. Keel out.”

Jean-Luc drew Beverly into his arms. “Talk about twisted.”

“You can say that again, Jean-Luc.  But at least we found Jack’s daughter. ...and I guess Wesley’s tutor is actually his half-sister.”

“Do you want her to continue as his tutor?”

“If she’s willing.  Jean-Luc, she’s really good with him.  I hope this isn’t going to be awkward.  But I don’t understand....Jack had to have known that Abby was his daughter and he served with her and never said anything to her or to you?”

“I am surprised, but she was an Ensign assigned to security, not ops, so he might not have interacted with her much.  I don’t know.  When Jack wakes up, he’s going to have a lot of explaining to do...to a lot of angry women.” Beverly leaned back in Jean-Luc’s embrace on the sofa.  “Well, this woman is angry, but I’m also happy as everything has finally given me the push I needed to leave him and be with you.”  Jean-Luc tightened his hold and pressed his lips to her neck before gently nuzzling.  “Thank god for that. “  Beverly giggled.  “Mmm, if you’re going to do that, perhaps we should retreat to the bedroom?” 

“I do like the way your mind works, Doctor Howard.” 

###

Beverly was determined not to make breakfast an awkward affair for Abigail, so when Walker and Abigail walked through the door Beverly greeted Abigail with a hug.  “Welcome to our apparently strange little family, Abby.” Abigail grinned. “Does this mean I get to call you Mom?”  Beverly scrunched up her face and Jean-Luc laughed. “She got you there Bev.” Abigail turned her eyes on Jean-Luc.

“Good morning, Uncle Jean-Luc.”  Walker burst out laughing.  “The look on your face, Johnny.” 

“Er..Well...Yes, I suppose...that would be...appropriate...just not in front of the crew, Lieutenant. Abigail.”

“I think what Jean-Luc is trying to say, is you can call us Beverly and Jean-Luc.”

“I’m not sure I can call my Captain by his first name....”  Abigail blushed. Walker squeezed her shoulder. “Just call him Johnny. He loves it.”  Jean-Luc rolled his eyes.  “I do not.  I only tolerate it from you and Jack.” Walker and Beverly both laughed.  Beverly’s laughter drew Wesley out of his room.

“Mommy, what’s so funny?  Ooh, hiya Uncle Wally!  Hi Miz Abby, it’s not time for school yet. I haven’t eated breakfast!”

“Wesley, we have something to tell you.  Abigail is actually your big sister.  What do you think of that?”

“Cool. Does this mean she will live with us?”

“No, Wes.  Abigail will maintain her own quarters.”  Quietly, so Wesley wouldn’t hear, Jean-Luc added “Or she’ll live with Uncle Wally.”  Abigail blushed and Walker just grinned. 

“Is Abby still my teacher?”  Jean-Luc looked over at Abigail. “It’s your decision, Lieutenant.   Beverly and I are quite happy for you to continue on as his tutor, and once we are all back on the S _targazer_ we’ll see about setting up a more permanent school for the other children too if you’re interested.” Abigail grinned. “Sir?  Are you offering me this because I’m your...well, I don’t really know what our relationship is, but is this only because we’re kind of related?”

“No, I was going to ask you if you wanted to start a school on the _Stargazer_ once we were able to return.”

“Then, Captain, I accept.”

Wesley scrunched up his face. “I don’t udderstand.”

“What don’t you understand, Wes?”

“Papa, if Abby is mawied to Uncle Walker, why isn’t she Aunt Abby?  If Mommy isn’t her mommy, how can she be my sister?”

Jean-Luc knelt down to Wesley’s height. He shot a look towards Walker but decided to ignore the first part of Wesley’s question. “I know, it’s a little confusing, Wes. Your Daddy is Abigail’s Daddy, too.  So that makes you half-siblings.  Do you remember what we told you if Mommy and I have a baby together? “  Wesley nodded. “Uh-huh.  They would be my sister or brudder.”

“Do you remember why?”

“Cos we would have the same Mommy.”

“Right.  So you and Abby have the same Daddy.”

“But you’re not her Papa?”

“No, Wes.”

“Ok.  But Daddy isn’t really my Daddy anymore, is he?”  It was Abigail’s turn to kneel down in front of the boy.  “Wesley,  I know.  I never thought of him as my Daddy, either ,but if it means you get to be my little brother, I’m willing to call him Daddy.  Could you call him Daddy if it means being my brother?”

“Will Papa still be my Papa?”  Jean-Luc chuckled and patted Wesley’s shoulder. “Can’t get rid of your Papa that easily.”

“Then okay....but what about Uncle Wally? Will he be my brudder?”  Jean-Luc laughed as Walker’s face went red.  “Wes, why don’t we have some Kirkpops.”

“Yay! Kirkpops!”  While Wesley ate his sugary cereal, the adults chose to have coffee, tea, croissants, and toast.  Breakfast was a jovial affair as Abigail slid into her role as part of the family.  Walker reflected that she would have become part of the family anyway once he asked her to marry him, and he quickly squashed those thoughts.  _Too soon, Walker.  Stop that.  Don’t scare Abigail away!_   Walker did want to talk to Jean-Luc about the living situation on board the _Stargazer_ though as it would be nice for Abby to lie with him. 

“So, Abby, tell us about your mom.”  Beverly asked as she bit off the corner of a croissant.

“Apparently, Wally knew my mom when they were kids.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows. “I never dated her!”  Walker was quick to say.  “But Johnny, do you remember meeting my neighbour Suz?” Jean-Luc nodded. “She’s Abigail’s mother?” 

“Yeah.  She and Jack dated when they were younger, but I lost touch with her after Jack came to the Academy. Apparently, they were still dating and I never knew they had married, let alone that Suz had been pregnant.” 

“I suppose that’s a good thing given you are now dating Abigail.”

“Indeed. Hey, Johnny, I wanted to ask you about my quarters on the _Stargazer_.”

“Mm, what about them? I was going to assign you Gilaad’s quarters once he leaves as those are a bit larger than standard quarters.”

“Well, could Abby live with me?”  Jean-Luc frowned. “You know, I made Beverly have her own quarters when she and Jack were dating...”

“Right, but you’re going to have Beverly live with you, aren’t you?”  Beverly cleared her throat. “Beverly is going to do whatever Beverly wants, Walker Keel!” Walker sheepishly grinned at his friend. “Sorry, Bev.  So are you going to share Jean-Luc’s quarters?”

“Probably.  But... we’re practically married.” 

“Practically?”   Jean-Luc grinned.  “Well, what would you call it?” 

“Engaged?”  Beverly huffed. “Same thing.” 

“Hmm. Practically implies that we’re almost married. So....are you telling me you want to set a date?” Jean-Luc looked at her hopefully.  “No,” Jean-Luc’s face fell. “Soon, alright? After this mess with Jack is over with.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” Beverly grinned. “Please do.”  Jean-Luc leaned over and kissed Beverly.

Walker cleared his throat. “You know, there are children at the table...”

“Wesley’s seen us kiss, haven’t you?”

“Uh-huh. Mommy and Papa kiss a lot. Sometimes they kiss laying down, too.”  Beverly’s face went red. 

“Ah, out of the mouths of babes, eh, Bev?” 

“Shut up, Walker.”

“I hate to bring this up, but...does this mean I have to make decisions about Jack’s care? What about Annisyn? Isn’t she pregnant with his child? Oh god, I’m going to have a little sister.  I’m still getting used to the idea of Wesley as my brother!”  Beverly leaned across the table and took Abby’s hand. “I didn’t want anything to do with Jack after I found out about Annisyn, but if you want, I will go with you and help you.  We’ll all help.”

“Uhm...Thank you, Beverly. I’d...I’d like that.” 


	12. Chapter 12

Annisyn Lobo did a double take when Abigail Yugen walked into the conference room flanked by Doctor Howard, Commander Keel, and Captain Picard.  Annisyn craned her neck to see where Jack’s little brat was, but didn’t see him anywhere.  She rubbed her bump subconsciously and glared at Abigail. “What are _you_ doing here?”

“Well, as it turns out, Jack Crusher is my father, so I have every right...in fact, more right than you to be in this room making decisions about his life.” 

“Prove it.”  Beverly produced a PADD that contained a DNA comparison between Abigail and Jack proving beyond a doubt that she was his daughter.  Annisyn looked at the PADD and scoffed. “Well, my baby is the only one Jack wanted.”  Beverly’s eyes flashed.

“Listen you little hussy, I don’t care if you marry Jack and have ten more babies with him. Jack Crusher is the father of my child and the father of Abigail and you _will_ treat us with respect or I will have you removed from this conference.”  Jean-Luc placed a comforting hand on Beverly’s back.  There was a reason Beverly hadn’t wanted to interact with his Lieutenant.  Annisyn took notice of Jean-Luc’s hand on Beverly’s back.  “Didn’t take you long to shack up with Jack’s best friend, I see.”

“That’s enough, _Lieutenant_. Don’t make me put you on notice.”  Annisyn glared at her Captain. Of course, he would take the Doctor’s side if she was sleeping with him.  “Where’s the little brat?  Shouldn’t he be here since all of his babysitters are?” 

“Lieutenant Lobo, Consider this your official warning.”

“What are you going to do to me, Captain?  I’m having your best friend’s baby. You wouldn’t want to upset him when he wakes up, would you?”

Jean-Luc raised an eyebrow and gave her an icy glare before quietly speaking. His voice, though soft, was full of authority.  “How would you like to be demoted back to Ensign?”

“I....”

“Now sit down so we can discuss Jack’s care.”

“Yes, Sir.”  Annisyn sat and looked at the table while she waited for the other doctor to come into the conference room.  Walker busied himself getting drinks for everyone, but Annisyn refused to answer when he asked her if she wanted anything.

“Sorry I’m late. Beverly, your son is quite the chatterbox.”  Beverly grinned.  “Sorry, Dalen.  I thought he would be alright in my office with some colouring while we were in here.”

“Oh, he’s fine.  I walked into your office thinking you would be there and he chatted my ear off.  Told me a lot about you, Captain.”  Jean-Luc grinned. “Should I be worried?”

“All good things, I assure you.”  Dalen surveyed the table and noticed another young woman next to Walker. “Ah, you must be Ms Crusher?”

“Lieutenant Yugen, Sir.  Jack Crusher divorced my mother when I was a child and we went back to my mother’s name.”   Annisyn raised her eyebrows.  Since when had Abigail been a Lieutenant?  She noticed the way Commander Keel had his hand resting on top of Abigail’s on the table.  _Ah. Slept with the Commander and he got his best friend to promote you._

“Sorry, Lieutenant.”

“Abby, Sir. You can call me Abby.” Dalen nodded.  “Abby, I assume you have been caught up on everything?”

“Yes, Sir. Walker, Beverly, and Jean-Luc, er... Commander Keel, Doctor Howard, and Captain Picard explained everything to me.”  Dalen gently smiled.  Obviously, she had been accepted into the family fold and was still getting used to separating family and professional life.  “Sir, my mother is on her way to the base.”  Annisyn spoke up. “Why is she coming?  She’s no longer married to Jack.”

“You’re not married to Jack. Why are _you_ here?”

“I’m having Jack’s baby.”

“So? You’ll have four, maybe five years with Dad before he leaves you.  The proof is sitting right here in front of you.”  Annisyn, surprisingly, had no response and remained silent. 

“ _Abigail,”_ Jean-Luc warned.  “Sorry, Sir.”  Walker snorted.  “Sir?” 

“Well, he is my Captain...”

“Uncle.“

“Brother.”

“Step-step Father?”  Annisyn rolled her eyes as Dalen cleared his throat. Obviously, this was some kind of family joke between them all.  “Abby, what does your mother know about Jack’s condition?”

“Everything Wal-Commander Keel was able to tell her.” 

“I told her everything you’ve told us, Doctor. She told me she remembered having a discussion with Jack back when he first left the academy and was married to her when Jack said he wanted every effort to be made to keep him alive....so I guess this means he would want surgery?” 

Dalen sighed. “What does anyone else think?” 

Jean-Luc frowned. “I’m still concerned about the potential memory damage.”

“Memory damage?”  Annisyn looked puzzled. “Is it a good idea to do surgery if he might lose his memory? Will he forget about me and the baby?”

“The short answer is...there is no right answer. _Yes_ , memory loss is going to be an issue, but it’s going to be an issue regardless. We don’t know how much of his memory he might lose, whether it would be short or long term, but the longer he is unconscious, the higher the chances are. Beverly?”

“Hmm?”

“What do you think?”

“I told you. Jack’s not my responsibility anymore.” Dalen grimaced. While he understood Beverly’s reasons for filing for the divorce, it really would have been easier if she had been the one making decisions, not this committee. “What’s your professional opinion?”

“There are risks.  Normally, I would ask the family making the decisions to weigh the risks carefully.  I told Abigail I would be here for her, since in reality, she’s currently the only one legally able to make decisions.  Jean-Luc and Walker may be like brothers to Jack, but legally speaking, blood is thicker...”

“What about me!”  Annisyn stood up from the table. “Surely my baby counts.” 

“If that were the case, I would still be speaking up for Wes.  But I gave up my rights when I filed for divorce.  Abigail is his adult daughter. If Wesley were older, he would be able to give his input, but I can only speculate at what he might want and I risk clouding my decision with my personal feelings, so no.”  Annisyn glared at Beverly and sat back down.  “Fine.”

“Beverly?  Can I speak to you alone?”  Abigail rose from her seat and after Walker squeezed her hand, she and Beverly headed out the door into the hallway to talk.  Jean-Luc exchanged a look with Walker and the two men sighed.  Annisyn continued to huff from her corner. 

Through the window in the conference room, Jean-Luc observed Beverly and Abigail speaking. There were some tears shed by both women, and they finally embrace before coming back into the room and taking  their seats again. “Doctor Quaice?  I think you should do the surgery.  Even if it means Ja-Dad loses some of his memory, his wishes were for him to be treated, so I think you should do it.”

“Very well.  Beverly, would you like to assist?”

“Wouldn’ t that be a conflict of interest?” Beverly’s eyes twinkled with mirth. “I’m likely to stab Jack....” Annisyn gasped as she couldn’t see the sarcastic smirk on Beverly’s face. “I don’t think Doctor Howard should participate. She obviously is bitter.”

Beverly rolled her eyes. “Annisyn.  I was being sarcastic.  Plus, healing is my job.  My oath says I will ‘do no harm’.  I won’t deliberately harm Jack while he’s under my care.  Jean-Luc, can you stay with Wes?”

“Of course, love. Do you want him to be told anything?”

“No. Not yet.  Not until we know more. If Jack comes out of this and has all his memories, then I’ll let Wesley see him.” Jean-Luc nodded.  He turned to Abigail. “Lieutenant, I’m placing you on compassionate leave for now.  I know you want to remain around Wesley, but please don’t over work yourself.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Lieutenant Lobo?” 

“Sir?” Lobo was smug. Surely, the Captain would offer her the same compassionate leave option.  “Please return to your temporary post.  When the _Stargazer_ returns I will be speaking with your supervisor about your subordination and we will be keeping an eye on you.  I don’t care who the father of your child is, I will demote you if I have to.” 

“Yes, Sir.” Annisyn said through gritted teeth before stalking out of the room.

Abigail stood up from the table and Walker quickly stood and placed a hand on her back.  He leaned down to speak quietly into her ear “A whole day off?  I could think of things to do...”  Abigail smiled and leaned up to place a kiss on his cheek.  “Me too.  If Mom’s coming to visit, I had better straighten my quarters.”  Walker groaned.  “We’re going to clean today?” 

“Mm. I thought I could move my belongings into your quarters and Mom could stay in mine....unless, you don’t _want_ me to....” she trailed a hand down his chest. “Errr....” 

“That’s what I thought.”

Jean-Luc and Beverly went back to her office to retrieve Wesley.  “Well now, young man.  Your mother has to work, your teacher has the day off, and my ship has left without me.  What do you say to spending the day with me?”

“Really Papa?”

“Yes, really.”

“Can we have ice cream?”  Jean-Luc exchanged a look with Beverly who shrugged.  “That’s your call, Jean-Luc. I might be in surgery all day. Think you can handle the whole day with Wes hyped up on ice cream?”  Jean-Luc pursed his lips. “Hmm. We’ll see.” He kissed Beverly and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. I’ll call you as soon as we’re done.”

“I’ll have some wine waiting for you tonight.”

“Mm, good boy.”  Wesley laughed. “Mommy, Papa isn’t a boy!”

“What is he?”

“Papa is a man!” 

“Mm, quite right, my boy.  I am indeed a man.... _your_ man, in fact, Beverly.”  He circled her waist with his arms and pulled her close and Wesley giggled.  Beverly softly whispered in his ear “I’m yours, too.”  She bit down on his earlobe gently and enjoyed watching him shiver. Straightening herself, she kissed Jean-Luc one more time and placed a kiss on Wesley’s head.  “Right. Well, you’re both my boys and I will see my boys later.” 

“Bye Mommy!” 

“Good Luck, my love.  We’re here if you need us.” 

###

Jean-Luc took Wesley to the base’s aquarium.  Jean-Luc hadn’t actually visited much of the recreational side of the base, with only a rare trip to the shops on the Promenade or an evening meal out at one of the restaurants. Having no children or a partner, he previously avoided the family areas of the base, but now with Wesley and Beverly in his life, he thought it wasn’t bad at all.  Naturally, Wesley already knew the names of all the aquatic life they saw, but he still enjoyed his day with his Papa.  Several people gave Jean-Luc a knowing look when Wesley broke free from his grip to run to the hands-on area. 

“First outing without the Mrs?”  Jean-Luc subconsciously rubbed the back of his neck. “Err...Yes. What do I do now?” 

“Ah, this is the hands-on area where the staff allow the children to pet some of the fish and other aquatic life.”

“And this is safe?”

“Absolutely!  As long as none of the children are from species that eat the fish...”  Jean-Luc eyed the man in civilian clothing he was speaking to. “Does that...happen a lot?” 

“Oh, more often than you would think! But I think we’re ok today. ” The man held out his hand to Jean-Luc. “Lieutenant Anders Milford, Captain. That blond boy over there is mine. His name is Alverth.”  Jean-Luc clasped the man’s hand “Captain Jean-Luc Picard.  My....son’s...name is Wesley.”  It was the first time Jean-Luc had called Wesley his son to anyone other than Beverly and he found he quite enjoyed calling him that.  Jean-Luc watched Wesley as he stood on a stepstool next to Alverth and gently placed his hand in the water onto the back of a stingray.

“Papa!! Come see!”  Jean-Luc shared a wry smile with Anders.  “Duty calls.”

“Captain of a ship, but at home, the children rule, am I right?”  Jean-Luc made a non-committal noise and hurried over to Wesley. 

“Papa, look!”  Jean-Luc  automatically put a hand around Wesley’s waist to hold him in place and looked down into the shallow water where Wesley was gently stroking a stingray.  “What are you touching?”

“A stingway!  An look, that’s a cwab over there!”  Jean-Luc squinted at the yellow crab.  “Is it?  But it’s not red?”

“Silly Papa! Cwabs can be all sortsa colours!” 

“Ah, I see. And what’s that?”  Jean-Luc pointed at a starfish with seven points.

“Izza stwarfish from Specifica.”  Jean-Luc hid his smile at Wesley’s pronunciation of Pacifica.  “Would you like to go to Pacifica one day and see the starfish and other fish up close?” Wesley turned big eyes on Jean-Luc. “Can we?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  He began to plan a family honeymoon in his head.  They would take Wesley to Pacifica and invite Walker and Abigail to join them and ask the pair to look after Wesley for a night or two. He grinned. What are big sisters and their boyfriends for if not for babysitting?  He made a mental note to tease Walker about becoming Wesley’s brother if he married Abigail. 

Wesley climbed down off the stool “Can I have ice cream now, Papa?”  Over on the other side of Alverth, Anders grinned at Jean-Luc. “Ah, trying to see what he can get away with without Mum around?”  

“Something like that.”  Jean-Luc knelt down to Wesley’s height. “Hmm.  Have you behaved yourself all day and have you listened to me?”

“Uh-huh.  An I helded your hand allllll day.”  Jean-Luc gave Wesley a look. “Did you?”  Wesley looked down at the floor. “No...I let go to pet the stingrays.  I’m sowwy Papa.” Jean-Luc ruffled his hair.  “Well, I suppose you were very good up until that point.  And I did promise you ice cream a few days ago.  Alright, we can go.”  Wesley grinned. “Yay! Thanks Papa!”

“Wrapped around your little finger?”

“Both him _and_ his mother.”  Jean-Luc replied to his new friend. 

###

Abigail didn’t have many belongings to pack, as she had left many of her belongings on the _Stargazer_ and it only took 20 minutes to pack back into her duffel.  Walker slung it over his shoulder and held out his hand to her. “Is this...is this a big deal?  Us living together?” 

“For me?  Yeah. I mean, I had boyfriends, but I’ve never wanted to live with one of them  before...”

“Me too.”

“Really?”  Walker used their twined hands to propel Abigail against his chest.  “Really.”  He leaned down and kissed her. “I’ve never...I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.”

“Oh? And how do you feel about me?”  Walker took a deep breath.  “Abigail...I think I’m falling in love with you.  I...I know we’ve only known each other for a few weeks, but....”

“I feel the same.”  Walker’s eyes went wide. “You do?”  Abigail nodded and went up on her tip toes to kiss Walker.  “I have to admit, I’m very happy you didn’t break up with me when we found out who my father was.”

“I...thought about it for about half a second.  But I care too much about you to care that Jack is your father.  Plus your mother said she would kill me if I hurt you...and I think Beverly and Jean-Luc would, too.”  Abigail laughed. “So..you’re only with me so your friends don’t kill you?”   Walker kissed her again. “Something like that.  Abby, let’s go home.”

###

Wesley was fast asleep.  A combination of the sugar he had inhaled at the ice cream parlour and all the excitement of spending the day with Jean-Luc had worn him out and he crashed out after Jean-Luc gave him a bath when they returned to their quarters because he was sticky from the ice cream.  Jean-Luc tenderly picked up Wesley from where he had fallen asleep on the sofa with a book in his hand and carried him into his bedroom.  He gently tucked Wesley into bed and placed a kiss on his forehead. “Goodnight, son.”

He turned around and found Beverly standing in the doorway , watching.  She smiled.  “Good day?” 

“Mm, I think he had a good time.  We went to the aquarium and had ice cream.  I gave him a bath and then he fell asleep on the sofa with a book.”  Beverly grinned.  Jean-Luc really was becoming a good father.  She idly wondered how soon they could have a baby of their own, but she knew she wanted to be married first and for some reason, she still hadn’t been willing to set a date.   Jean-Luc drew Beverly into his arms and took in her dishevelled hair.  “Rough surgery?”

“It went as well as...well, Dalen and I performed our duties and we shall see if Jack wakes up soon.”  She went limp in his arms. “You said something about wine?”

“Mm.  Why don’t you change and I’ll  get us some wine and nibbles?”

“Time for a shower?”  Jean-Luc wiggled his eyebrows “Only if I can join you...”

Jean-Luc made love to Beverly under the hot spray of the shower.  Beverly wrapped both her legs around Jean-Luc and he had her pressed up against the wall as he rained kisses on her face, her neck, and her chest.  “I love you, Beverly.”

“I love you too, Jean-Luc....Jean-Luc....I....” Beverly reached her climax and clung to him, with Jean-Luc following closely behind.  Beverly slowly moved her legs back to the floor and Jean-Luc rested his head on her shoulder.  Beverly stroked his back gently. “Jean-Luc...I want to get married.”  Jean-Luc raised his head from her shoulder. “Now?”  Beverly gently shoved him.

“Soon.  And Jean-Luc....I want to have a baby with you.”

“Ok.”

“Ok? That’s all you have to say?”  Jean-Luc reached behind Beverly and turned off the water. He wrapped Beverly in a towel before grabbing one for himself and wrapping it around his waist.  “No, that’s not all I have to say, but you wanted romance, and I don’t think naked in the shower is overly romantic.”

“Oh, I don’t know...”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows, but lowered himself down onto one knee and reached for Beverly’s hand.  “Beverly Howard, you are the love of my life, and I’ve been a fool for not telling you sooner. I love you. Will you marry me?”

“Yes.”  Jean-Luc stood up and kissed her.  “When?”

“Uh...Now?” 

“Really?”

“Well...there’s bound to be another Captain on this station who is awake right now...”

“Bev, are you serious?”  She nodded. “Let’s wake up Wes and contact Walker and Abigail...and find someone to marry us!” 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've written better. I'm sorry.

Jean-Luc and Walker rushed through the base clad in their dress uniforms.  “I need rings, Walker.  I can’t marry Beverly without a ring to give her!”

“Johnny, we’re on a space station.  This place is open twenty-four seven. Well,or whatever the rotation is.  I’m sure there will be a shop open.  Calm down, man.”

“I can’t calm down. Walker, Beverly is going to be my wife!”  Jean-Luc grinned at his best friend.  “Oh my God. Beverly is going to be my wife.  Walker....I can’t do this.”  He came to a dead stop outside of a cafe and sat down at one of the tables and rested his head in his hands.  “What am I doing?  I’m almost fifty.  Beverly deserves someone younger...she deserves someone better than me.” 

“Hold that thought, Johnny.”  Walker disappeared for a minute and returned with a cup of tea.  Jean-Luc took a long swig. “Erm, that’s not Earl Grey.”

“No. It’s not.  It has a shot of whisky in it.  I thought you needed something to calm your nerves.” Walker took the seat opposite Jean-Luc. “Johnny.  Listen to me.  Beverly loves _you_.  She doesn’t want anyone else. She knows you’re older than her and you know what?”  Jean-Luc looked up at his friend.  “Beverly doesn’t care.  She wants to marry you and have children with _you_.” 

“Walker, I love her more than life itself.  I’ve loved her for....well, how long have we known her?”

“Ten years.” 

“I’ve loved her for all ten of those years.” 

“I know. And Johnny?  I’m pretty sure she’s loved you for all those years, too.”  Jean-Luc’s eyes went wide.  “But...she married Jack.”

“Jack got her pregnant. Look, Beverly will probably kill me for telling you any of this, but do you remember after Wesley was born?  You arranged for the _Stargazer_ to dock here for a few days so Jack could see Beverly and Wes?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “I went to see Beverly on the second day of our leave, but Jack wasn’t there.  She said he had gone out.  I held days old Wesley and my heart broke in two because I thought from that point Beverly would never be mine.”

“Jack never went to see Beverly.”

“He what!” Jean-Luc’s shout drew the attention of passerbys.  Walker gave them an apologetic shrug.

“Beverly told me when I came to visit her the following week.” Jean-Luc rested his head in his hands again.  “But why didn’t she tell me? I could have...”

“Could have what? Ordered Jack to visit his wife and new baby?  No, Johnny.  This is all Jack’s doing.”

“That bastard.”

“Yeah.  When I saw Bev....Johnny, she was a mess.  She told me about your visit and how accommodating you were towards her and how you had fussed over Wesley as if he was your own while her husband...well, we really don’t know what he was doing, do we?  If he wasn’t on the ship and wasn’t in her quarters...”

“He was probably screwing someone else on the base.  I suppose we should consider ourselves lucky he only got women pregnant three times, eh?”

“That we know of.”

“True.”  Jean-Luc took another sip of his whisky-laced tea and stood up.  “Walker? We have some rings to buy...”

###

“Mom!”  Abigail embraced the woman walking off the gangway.  “Abigail, darling. It’s good to see you after so long.”

“Mom, this is Beverly....Uh...I guess she’s kind of my step-mother?”  Suzanne smiled at the woman standing next to her daughter. “Doctor Howard, is it?  Abigail has told me quite a bit about you and that son of yours...who I suppose is actually Abigail’s brother. Oh, this really is confusing.”  Suzanne took in the dress uniforms of the two ladies. “Have I missed something? Why are you both in your dress blues?” 

Beverly blushed. “I’m getting married in about an hour.”

“To that Captain of yours?” 

“Yes...Abby, just how much have you told your mother?”  Abigail looked down. “Erm....everything?”

“You know, Beverly, I met Johnny a long time ago.  Oh, I was still in High School when Wally came home on his first break from the Academy with his roommate in tow.  I don’t suppose he remembers me, though.”

“Well, we’ll have to see. Come to my wedding? It somehow seems appropriate with our connection to each other....”

“Jack Crusher.  The only good thing he ever did was give me Abigail.  And I suppose, your Wesley.”  Beverly grinned and linked her arm through the older woman’s . “I think, Suzanne, we’re going to get along quite well.”  Abigail trailed behind her mother and her ex-step-mother and listened in on their conversation.

“Beverly, darling, are you sure you want to get married in your dress uniform?” 

“Well...we only decided tonight to get married.  In fact, I have to go wake up my son, I left him sleeping in our quarters with a babysitter to meet you with Abby.” 

“Ah, I see.  Is there a dress shop on the Promenade?” Beverly shrugged. “Probably.”

“There is.  I saw it a few days ago,” Abby piped up.  “Right. I think we have a stop to make before we go and wake up Wesley for his parent’s wedding, don’t you think?”  Suzanne’s eyes twinkled.  She really was a romantic at heart, even if Jack had broken her heart when they were younger.

###

Wesley fiddled with the collar of his shirt. “Mommy, do I hafeta wear this?”

“You’re just as bad as Papa. He hates his dress uniform.” 

“Mommy, you look pretty.”  Beverly twirled in front of the mirror.  She didn’t know how Suzanne had managed it, but she had convinced the dress shop owner to replicate a custom wedding dress for Beverly in very little time. Beverly had chosen a dress in a champagne colour, not wanting to wear pure white.  The dressmaker had even thrown in a miniature suit for Wesley.  “Thank you, Wes.  Are you ready to walk me up the aisle to Papa?”  Wesley nodded.  “Uh huh.  But you’ll still be Mommy, right?”

“Of course, Sweetheart.”

“And Papa will give me a new name?”

“That’s right.  What will your name be?”

“Wesley Picard!” Beverly wiped at the tears in the corner of her eyes. If only life had been different all those years ago, Wesley could have been Jean-Luc’s son from the beginning.  “Mommy, why are you cwying?”

“Oh, I’m just really happy, Wes.”

“’M happy too, but I don’t wanna cwy.”  Abigail and Suzanne joined Wesley in her bedroom. “You look lovely.  Certainly will surprise Johnny.” Beverly grinned. “I hope so. Thank you for convincing me I should have a proper dress.”

“Of course. Shall we?”  Abigail took Wesley’s hand and they walked ahead of Beverly out of her quarters and through the corridors to the small chapel.  Suzanne ducked her head in “I see Wally and Jean-Luc.  I’m going to go talk to them.”

Jean-Luc and Walker looked up as the door opened. “Suz? When did you get here?  It’s so great to see you!”  Walker approached the woman and picked her up in a hug and kissed her cheek. “Hmm. Is that the way you greet your future mother-in-law?”

“ _Suz_.”

“What? I can see love from a mile away.  You, Wally, are in love.” 

“Yeah, I am.”

“Oi, it’s my wedding!”  Suzanne chuckled. “Hello, Johnny. I don’t know if you remember meeting me...it was a long time ago. “

“Vaguely.  It’s good to see you again.  I know Abigail will appreciate you being here.  I’m sorry Jack never told us about you or Abigail.”

“Oh, none of that. You’re getting married. We can talk about Jack later.” 

Admiral Brant filed into the room. “Captain Picard.  When I heard you were looking for someone to perform a marriage ceremony, I had to volunteer . I must say how pleased I am for you and Doctor Howard.”

“Thank you, Sir.”

Abigail came through the door and walked down the small aisle to stand opposite Walker.  She grinned at her Captain. “Ready, Sir?”

“As I’ll ever be.” 

The door opened again and Jean-Luc’s breath caught in his throat. Beverly was not wearing her dress uniform as they had originally planned and she floated down the aisle in a beautiful champagne gold dress that set off the golden highlights in her hair.  Wesley clutched her hand and when they got to Jean-Luc, Wesley very solemnly handed Jean-Luc Beverly’s hand and said “Papa, I want to you to marry Mommy.”  Jean-Luc grinned and ruffled his hair before Walker took Wesley’s hand and at him in a seat in the front row.

“Beverly, you look beautiful,”  he leaned over and kissed her cheek before holding her hands and facing Admiral Brant.

Their wedding vows were simple and pure.  As Beverly and Jean-Luc pledged their love to each other, Walker couldn’t help but sneak a look over at Abigail. He watched his two best friends exchange rings and when the admiral told Jean-Luc to kiss the bride, Walker whooped for joy and Wesley joined in.  Suzanne had found a camera somewhere and so the wedding party posed for a few photos, but the one Jean-Luc would cherish for years to come and hang in his ready room was the one where he had Wesley hoisted in his arms with Beverly’s arms wrapped around him.  Jean-Luc leaned over and gave Beverly a kiss just as the picture was taken and Wesley had his mouth open in a giggle.

“Why don’t we all return to our quarters for some champagne?  Would you like to join us, Admiral?”

“Oh, no Captain, Doctor.  I will file notice of your marriage and my secretary will send you your certificate in the morning.  Goodnight, everyone.” 

The small group made their way back to Beverly and Jean-Luc’s quarters where Beverly and Jean-Luc were surprised to see a small feast laid out, complete with a small wedding cake.  “Walker, did you do this?”

“Guilty.  Abigail and I wanted to do something nice for you. And...uh...Wesley is going to sleepover with us tonight.” 

“Uncle Wally, don’t forget to put on your pyjamas tonight!”  Walker blushed and Suzanne gave him a knowing look.  “Oh, Wally.  Don’t be so embarrassed.” 

The five friends plus Wesley enjoyed their small party until Wesley started to yawn.  Walker gathered the boy in his arms and carried him across the hallway to his and Abigail’s quarters, while Suzanne retreated to Abigail’s former quarters next door.  “Goodnight, you love birds.” 

As soon as the door slid shut, the newlyweds were in each other’s arms.   “Beverly, have I told you how lovely you look in this dress? You are exquisite.”

“Mm, yes, but tell me again.” Beverly began to work open the collar on Jean-Luc’s dress tunic and when she freed the clasp, she moved her hands to the rest of the fastenings and soon had his tunic off and on the floor.  Jean-Luc was working on the little buttons down the back of Beverly’s dress when their comm unit went off.

 _“Sickbay to Captain Picard.”_ Jean-Luc sighed against Beverly’s lips. “Picard here.”

_“Captain, I wanted to inform you and Beverly that Jack is starting to come around.  I thought you might like to be here when he opens his eyes.”_

“We just got married, Dalen!” 

_“Congratulations, Beverly, Captain. I take it you won’t be coming to Sickbay, then?”_

_“_ Who else are you calling?”

 _“Commander Keel, Lieutenant Yugen, and Lieutenant Lobo.”_ Jean-Luc turned to Beverly. “Well, this ought to be fun. What do you think? Should we go and see the look on Jack’s face? Why don’t we take Suzanne too.”

“Excellent idea.  Dalen, we’ll be there in about ten minutes.  Picard out.”  Beverly giggled.  She liked saying her new name. 

Beverly turned around. “Just re-button it. I’ll wear my dress to Sickbay.”

“If you’re sure?”  Beverly nodded and Jean-Luc quickly re-buttoned her dress before reaching for his tunic.  “I really hate this uniform, but if you’re staying in your dress, I might as well.”  Once they were both dressed, they exited into the hallway and rang the chime outside Walker’s quarters. 

“I take it you heard?”

“Yes. We’ve arranged for a babysitter to come keep an eye on Wesley so we all can go. Abigail is just over with Suzanne.”  Walker grinned at his best friends. “Jack will never know what hit him when he sees Abigail and Suzanne too.”  Walker eyed his friends still in their wedding clothing. “Well, and Beverly in a wedding dress might shock him. Can I be the one to tell him you just got married?”

Jean-Luc shook his head at his friend. “You’re incorrigible.”

A babysitter soon arrived to keep an eye on the sleeping Wesley and the group who had just celebrated Beverly and Jean-Luc’s nuptials made their way to Sickbay.  They were met at the door by Annisyn Lobo, who gasped when she saw Beverly in a wedding dress.

“What are you doing here in that get up? Doctor Quaice told me Jack might wake up and I wanted to be the first face he sees....and who are _you_ ,” she asked, directing her question at Suzanne.

“Jack’s first wife.  You are?”

“Oh, mother, this is Annisyn.  She’s having my little sister.” 

Suzanne raised her eyebrows. “I see.”

Jean-Luc levelled a gaze at his Lieutenant.  “Lieutenant, I think we already had words about your behaviour. Do I really need to lecture you on how you are to treat your superior officers?” 

“No, Sir.”  Beverly strode into Sickbay with the rest of the group following behind her. She stopped in her office to grab her labcoat before entering Doctor Quaice’s office.  Through the window into Jack’s private room they could tell Jack had started to regain some colour and he was off the breathing machine.  Jean-Luc reached for Beverly’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “You don’t have to be here, you know.”

“I know, but I told Abby I would be here for her and you were right about Jack still being Wesley’s father. I don’t want to wish the father of my child any ill-will, even if I do still want to unplug him.”  Jean-Luc grinned at his wife. “Don’t say that too loudly, dear.” 

Annisyn pushed her way to the front and looked through the window. “Well, can we go in?” 

“I think we better wait for Doctor Quaice, Lieutenant.” 

Doctor Quaice surveyed the group standing in his office. “Beverly, Captain. Congratulations!”  Jean-Luc grinned. “Thank you, Doctor. I’m sorry we didn’t invite you and your wife to the ceremony, but it all came together at the last minute.”

“Yes, I’m sorry Dalen. I just didn’t want to wait one minute longer to be married to Jean-Luc.”  Annisyn gasped and Abigail elbowed her. 

“I understand, dear.  But you both must join us for a meal before I lose you as my assistant.”  Beverly looked down. “I’m sorry, Dalen.  I should have spoken with you, but I don’t want t live apart from Jean-Luc, and there is an opening on the _Stargazer_.” 

“I understand.  I take it then, Captain, you no longer have an issue with children on board?”

“I never had an issue.  My concern was for their safety and I do not want children in areas such as the bridge or engineering, but Beverly and Wesley could have joined Jack at any time.  I fear our dear Jack had been telling tales.”

“I see. I’m sorry, Beverly.” 

“It’s in the past now. Now, how is Jack doing?”  Beverly accepted the PADD Dalen held out to her and scanned it. “Looks like the surgery went as well as we could expect.”

“Yes, I thought it was about time we try to bring him out of his coma.  I think you, Captain Picard, and Commander Keel should at least be present when he wakes.”

“What about me? I’m having his baby!” 

“Lieutenant Lobo, I understand. However, Commander Crusher wouldn’t be expecting to see you and I think it might shock him.”

“But seeing Doctor Crusher in a wedding dress won’t be a shock?”  Jean-Luc turned towards Dalen. “The Lieutenant has a point, Doctor. Should we change?”

“No. If Jack is going to see me, he’s seeing me now. In my wedding dress.  After my wedding to you.”  Jean-Luc softly smiled and leaned down to whisper in her ear “I love you, Doctor Picard.” 

“Love you too, Captain Howard.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.  “You know, it _is_ a Howard tradition.  Jack refused, but...”

“Are you serious?” 

“No, of course not. But the look on your face was worth it!”  She grinned.  Dalen cleared his throat.  “Beverly, are you done tormenting your husband?” 

“Sorry, Dalen. We’ll all go in.  If it shocks Jack, well...he deserves it.”

Beverly arranged the group around Jack’s bed. Standing on one side was Annisyn, followed by Walker and Abigail, and on the other side, Jean-Luc, Beverly, and Suzanne. Beverly applied the hypospray that would bring Jack out of his medically induced coma after his surgery and they all looked down on him as his eyes slowly twitched open. 

“Jean...Jean-Luc?  Bev...Beverly?”  Jack looked beyond Beverly and his eyes went wide. “Suzanne? What..going....on?”  A nurse fetched a glass of water and when she went to give it to Jack, Annisyn took it and held it to Jack’s lips. “Oh Jack!  I thought we had lost you!” 

“...Thank you....Nurse?” 

“I’m not the nurse! It’s me, Annisyn!” 

“Ann....Annisyn?” Jack looked over at Beverly.  “Bev? Who....she?”  Tears filled Annisyn’s eyes and she sobbed out “Don’t you know who I am?  Jack!  You said you loved me!  I’m having your baby!” 

Jack looked at her witha blank look.  “I..don’t...remember. I’m...sorry.”  Beverly took pity on Annisyn. “Remember, we said Jack might suffer memory loss. We won’t know the full extent or if it’s temporary or permanent for some time.” 

“Memory...loss?  Bev?  Pretty dress...why?”  Jean-Luc placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder.  “Jack.  Beverly and I are married.”

“I...forgot?” 

“No.  We were married recently.  Beverly divorced you.”

“Oh.  Why?” Jean-Luc merely raised his eyebrows at his friend and indicated the still sobbing Annisyn.  “Suzanne?  Why...you here?”  Suzanne reached for Jack’s hand and gave it a squeeze.  “When Abigail told me what happened to you, I thought I ought to come see you.”

“Ab...Abi...My baby girl?” 

“Not a baby anymore, Jack.  She’s twenty-four.  And dating Walker Keel, I might add.”

“Wally?” 

“Yeah, Jackie?”

“Don....t...hurt...my girl...”  Walker grinned. “Maybe you should have told me you married Suz and had a daughter.” Jack frowned. “Can’t...remember....why I didn’t.  Abigail...here?”

“I’m here.” Jack gazed over at Abigail. He knew her, and knew he served with her.  He reached out his hand to her and Abigail tentatively took it. “Abigail...you look like...your mother. I’m...sorry.”

“Hmm. We’ll talk later.”  Abigail freed her hand from Jack’s and Walker wrapped an arm around her. Abigail didn’t really want anything to do with Jack Crusher, but she supposed she should make an attempt, especially for Wesley’s sake.

“Bev? Where’s Wes?”

“Sleeping. When you’re a bit stronger, we’ll bring him to see you, alright?”  Beverly refused to look at Jack for longer then necessary and began to check the monitors above his head instead.

“Ok. Bev?”

“Hmm?”

“I...hurt you?” 

“Yes, you did.” 

“I’m sorry.”

“You don’t know what you did. You’re not.  But that’s something to talk about later.  I think you’ve had enough excitement for now.  I’ll leave you with the nurse. I have a honeymoon to have.”

“Uhhh....”

“I’ll stay with you, Jack!”  Annisyn had stopped crying and grabbed for his hand. She placed his hand on her swollen belly. “See, our little girl is strong.” 

“Baby? I don’t...remember.”  Tears pooled in Annisyn’s eyes again.  “I don’t understand. He remembers everyone else except for me?” Beverly felt bad for the girl, but there was nothing she could do to.  It might be a temporary loss, but all signs pointed to it being permanent, they just didn’t know how far the loss went back. 

“I’m sorry, Annisyn.  I think Jack has lost at least the last six months.  They can run tests in the morning to determine how far it goes back or if it might be permanent.”

“Permanent?”  Beverly place her hands on her hips. “We told you, the surgery had risks.” 

“Then why did you do it?”

“Because it was Jack’s wishes to be taken care of, whatever the cost.  Now, if you’ll excuse me....”  Beverly reached for Jean-Luc’s hand and tugged him out of the room and through Dalen’s office into hers.  She discarded her labcoat and then fell into her chair.  Jean-Luc perched on the edge of her desk in front of her.  “Hey. You’re allowed to cry, you know.  I won’t hold it against you if you cry on our wedding night.”

“Oh, you,” Beverly wiped at her eyes. “I don’t care about Jack, honest.  And I can’t stand Annisyn, but  I can’t help but feel sorry for her.”

“Do you think Jack will ever remember?”

“Not likely.  I’m a bit relieved he remembers Wesley.” 

“Will you let Wesley see him?” Beverly rolled her eyes at Jean-Luc.  “We, Jean-Luc. You’re Wesley’s parent too. We will make the decision together. But not now.”

“Oh?”

“Right now, I want to return to our quarters and turn off the comms.”

“Beverly, you know I can’t...as Captain I need to be available to my crew at all times....”

“Even when your ship isn’t here?” Beverly reached out a hand and ran her finger just under Jean-Luc’s collar, making him shudder before cupping his cheek.

“Er...I suppose you’re right.”  Beverly stood up and kissed his nose. “I know I’m right. Come on, let’s get out of here.” 


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where we learn more about Suzanne's path and celebrate with the newlyweds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for the reviews! I will reply to them tomorrow, I promise!

Jean-Luc was once again mostly naked working open the buttons along the back of Beverly’s dress, but this time they deactivated their badges and set the console to route all messages to Walker.  Jean-Luc figured he might as well give his pending First Officer something to do.  Beverly had her back to Jean-Luc as he slowly and reverently slipped the pearl buttons out of their delicate loops.  He kissed down her back as he parted the back of the dress and when he reached the last button he gently tugged it down over her hips.  The volumous folds of gold seemed to stand up on their own so Beverly stepped out of her dress and turned around.  Jean-Luc held her close to his body as he kissed her and ran his hands down her sides to hook his thumbs in the waistband of her delicate knickers.  He slowly peeled them down her legs and knelt down in front of her as he lifted first one foot and then the other to remove the garment.  He sat back on his heels and just looked at her. 

Beverly blushed. “What are you doing?”

“I’m looking at my naked wife. Did you know how beautiful you are?”  Beverly blushed deeper.  “Well, stand up. I want to look at my husband.”  Jean-Luc grinned.  “I like that.”

“What?”

“You calling me husband.”  Jean-Luc rose to his feet, pushed his shorts down to the floor,  and held his arms out for Beverly to inspect. “Like what you see?”  Beverly licked her lips.  “Yes.  Come here.”  Jean-Luc grabbed Beverly’s hips and pulled her close.  His lips found hers and they crashed together as each fought to take control.  Beverly won, and she smugly smiled as she backed Jean-Luc towards the bed. She pushed him down onto the bed and straddled his legs. 

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

###

Walker had invited Suzanne back to their quarters. As much as he was falling in love with Abigail, he knew there were some things she needed her mother for.  After dismissing the babysitter and checking that Wesley was still sleeping, he walked Abigail over to the settee and sat her down next to her mother.  “I’ll get us some drinks. Why don’t you talk with your mom?” 

Abigail leaned up and gave Walker a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks, Wally.  I....you’re good to me.”    Abigail stopped herself before saying she loved him.  She knew she did, but she worried it was too soon or it might look like she was saying she loved him because of everything going on with Jack and with Beverly and her Captain.   Suzanne shot a knowing look at Walker before reaching for her daughter’s hand and giving it a squeeze.  “Are you alright, darling?”

“No, Mom.  I...you know I’ve never asked you about my father once I reached my teenage years.  I had just accepted that Dad didn’t want to be in my life and I was fine with it.  But now....he’s here.  And he’s served with me for two years and never told me he was my father?  What kind of man does that?  And then I find out that not only did he turn his back on us, but he had planned to do it to Beverly and Wesley too? More than once, if those papers Wally found in his quarters are proof. “  A tear slipped out of Abigail’s eye and her mother pulled her towards her shoulder. 

“I know, Darling.  I tried to put Jack out of my mind.  He had given me the best present in the world – you – and so when he left us I was upset, naturally...I was young, my childhood friends,” she shot a look at Walker, “They had all grown up and left our small town.  I had always assumed I would, too.  Or that we would have gone with Jack.  I was nineteen when I was pregnant with you.  Jack was in his second year at the Academy, and I was in art school.  I would have left school to be with your father, but he didn’t want to move into married quarters. I foolishly assumed it had something to do with the level of the courses he was taking and perhaps not wanting to be distracted by a wife and child, so I stayed where I was and had you. 

“The day you were born was the best day of my life, even if your father hadn’t been present.” Walker gasped.  So, it was a pattern for Jack to get a woman pregnant, marry her, but then abandon her and her child.  He briefly wondered if there had been anyone in the  years between Suzanne and Beverly, but decided he really did not want to know, especially since he had been dating Beverly for six years before she became pregnant.  Suzanne continued to speak. “We saw your father when you were six months old. He had finally had a break from classes and came home.  The pattern continued like that until you were two, when he graduated from the Academy.  I had put my own studies on hold when you were born-“

“I’m sorry, Mom.”

“Don’t be.  It was my decision.  But anyway, I had thought Jack would get an assignment on a base where we could all live and I could resume my studies, but his first assignment was on a starship and he said he wasn’t allowed to bring us along.”

“That might have been true, Suz.  Jack had a hardass for a Captain on his first assignment.  I’m not trying to make excuses for Jack, though.  I do know if he had asked Jean-Luc when he was assigned to the ‘ _gazer_ , Jean-Luc would have permitted the both of you to join him.”

“I see.  Well,  when he got assigned to the _Stargazer_ , he told me he couldn’t be with me anymore as he was going into deep space on a five-year mission.”

“That part was definitely true,” Walker said as he passed both Suzanne and Abigail cups of tea before returning to the replicator for his own. “We were being sent pretty far from Earth,  possibly because I don’t think ‘fleet really knew what to do with a twenty-eight year old Captain, his twenty-eight year old First Officer, and a whole slew of other twenty-somethings.  Do you know we barely had anyone on our crew at first who was over the age of thirty?  Greyhorse was our oldest crewman and he was only thirty-eight.  We were such a young crew back then.” 

“But Dad didn’t have to divorce you.”

“No, but I wasn’t going to fight him. So, we divorced after I got him to promise to financially support you, and I moved back home with my parents to finish my degree.  Beverly is a strong woman to have continued her studies.”

“Determined, more like.  I’m not sure if it’s my place to tell you about Beverly’s past, but her parents died in an explosion when she was a child and she was raised on a backwater planet called Arvada Three by her grandmother. After the...well, after the destruction there, they moved to Caldos.  I think she felt she had something to prove.  Not to mention Johnny and I wouldn’t have let her quit her studies.  I think Johnny was more upset than Jack when she left for the base after she became pregnant...now that I think about it, I’m going to guess Jack told her she had to leave...even though we all knew Johnny would have made an exception for Bev.  He was in love with her back then, too.”

“Oh, the poor man.  I’m so glad they’re finally together.”

“You’re not the only one, Suz.  Having to watch Johnny pine for her over the past ten years has been no picnic, let me tell you.  And of course, I knew how Beverly felt about him, too.  I’m so glad I don’t have to hide my knowledge of their feelings anymore.”

“Or your own?”  Walker blushed, but came to sit next to Abigail and reached for her hand. “Abby?  I know we’re sitting in a room with your mother and this might not be the way I intended to tell you, but I love you...” Tears glinted in Abigail’s eye. “Wally, I love you too...at first, I was afraid I was having feelings for you because of everything that’s going on with Jack, but I started to fall in love with you before I even knew who my father was.” Walker leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.  Suzanne stood up.

“Right, well. I suppose I ought to leave you lovebirds alone.  Walker, you know I love you like a brother, so for the love of all things, do not hurt my daughter.  But, feel free to hurt my daughter’s father...” Walker grinned.

“Understood, Suz. I have no intentions of hurting Abigail.”

“Good.”  Suzanne leaned over to give her daughter a brief hug. “Goodnight, Darling.  See you in the morning?”

“Breakfast with the Picards at 0900? Oh, it feels so funny to say that!”  Abigail grinned.  She was overjoyed for her Captain and Beverly. 

“In their quarters?”  Abigail nodded. “I’ll see you there.”

The door slid shut behind Suzanne and she sighed.  Suzanne was happy for her daughter to be with such a wonderful man as Walker, but she didn’t like having to face her ex-husband once again.  Of course, when Abigail had told her she wanted to join Starfleet instead of teach on a base, Suzanne had thought she might be forced to interact with her father, but Starfleet was huge.  Who knew Abigail would have been assigned to the same ship as her father and then assigned to tutor her father’s son from his second marriage? Naturally, if Abigail had told Suzanne the last name of the child when she first accepted the assignment, Suzanne might have made the connection, but Abigail had only referred to the child by his first name – Wesley. While Suzanne had been aware that Jack’s grandfather had been named Wesley, without knowing the boy’s last name had been Crusher Suzanne simply thought the name was a small coincidence.  

Still, she couldn’t help but feel as though she should have prepared Abigail better for this, especially when she had heard Abigail would be on the _Stargazer_ serving under Walker’s old roommate,  Jean-Luc Picard.  But Suzanne had no reason to think that Jack would have still been assigned to the ship.  But at least, Abigail had Walker.  Walker had been like an older brother to Suzanne growing up. Which sort of made him an uncle for Abigail, but she wasn’t going to think about that.  Of course, Walker had never met Abigail as a child, so perhaps he might not have fallen in love with her and would only be seen as an Uncle...and as much as Suzanne wished she could go back into the past to change it so Walker was in her life again, she wouldn’t have wanted to change Abigail falling in love with him. 

###

Jean-Luc returned to the bedroom, glasses of champagne in hand. 

“Mm,  definitely could get used to my naked husband bringing me champagne in bed.” Jean-Luc chuckled and got back onto the bed. “I think our son might have something to say about me walking around our quarters naked.”  Beverly giggled.  “Yes. ‘Papa, why did you forget your pyjamas?’  Oh, so innocent.” Beverly accepted the glass of champagne and took a sip. “Thank you, Jean-Luc...for...everything. For accepting Wes as your own son...”

Jean-Luc placed her glass on the bedside table and pulled Beverly into his arms.  He kissed the top of her head. “Beverly...my love...the first time I saw Wesley, I wished he had been mine.  All I wanted was to be holding our child in my arms...from day one of us getting together, I always planned on treating Wes as if he was my own.” 

“And you did.  And Jean-Luc, you’ll get to hold our child in your arms, I promise.” Jean-Luc’s eyes went wide.  “Are we...expecting?”  Beverly laughed. “Not yet, but good to know where you stand.  I haven’t removed my implant yet...I didn’t want to without talking to you about it first.  I didn’t want you to think I was tricking you into anything...”

“Oh, Beverly.  Is that what Jack said to you when you became pregnant with Wesley?” She nodded.  “Oh, my love.  If you were pregnant right now, I would be overjoyed.  Anytime you want to remove your implant is fine with me.  You know I don’t have one, right?”  She nodded.  “It’s your heart, isn’t it?  I did a little research about artificial hearts after you first told me about yours.  I thought...well, I was a medical student, and if I was going to be around you I thought I had better learn how to treat you.”  Jean-Luc tightened his grip on Beverly. “Thank you. I can’t imagine anyone else taking better care of me.” 

“Well...I expect you to live for a very long time, my love.  So don’t do anything stupid!”

“Would I?”

“Hmm....Yes.”  Jean-Luc pouted. “Oh, don’t give me that look. How many times has Gilaad had to prevent you from going on an away mission?”

“Point taken.  I will endeavour to be more careful, especially now that I have a wife and son to think about.”

“Tomorrow,” Beverly said firmly.

“Hm?”

“I think I’ll have T’Sal remove my implant tomorrow.”

“Oh? Well, in that case, I guess we had better start practicing....” Jean-Luc effortlessly rolled over so he was on top of her and kissed her deeply while his fingers roamed down her body. 

###

Abigail couldn’t sleep.  Just two months ago, she had been a lowly Ensign, with no family other than her mother and through a series of random occurrences, not only had she learned who her father was, but she discovered a step-mother and little brother, and gained a boyfriend who just happened to have grown up with her mother and father.  And, she was promoted to Lieutenant junior grade, with another promotion to full Lieutenant expected once they were all back on the _Stargazer_.  It really was a lot for the young woman to take in.  She peeked in on Wesley, sound asleep clutching a stuffed toy.  Wesley was one of the best things to have happened to her, even if she hadn’t met Walker or found out who her father was. Becoming Wesley’s tutor was going to lead her on to doing exactly what she wanted to do when she joined Starfleet – become a teacher on a ship for the children of families working on the ships. 

Walker came up behind her and wrapped his arm around her waist. She leaned back into his embrace.  “He looks so angelic when he’s asleep, doesn’t he?” Abigail laughed. “He’s really not a bad kid, you know.”

“You’re just saying that because he’s your brother.”

“Hm. Maybe.”  Abigail continued to watch Wesley sleeping. “Do you want one?”

“One what?”

“Kid.”  Abigail turned around in Walker’s arms.  “Do I want a kid?” Walker shifted his weight and looked anywhere but at Abigail’s eyes.  “I just wondered.”

“Walker? Do _you_ want a kid?”

“I don’t know, Ab.  I honestly hadn’t thought about children...much like Johnny, I thought my life would be dedicated to Starfleet.  I never thought I would meet someone like you.”

“Like me?” Walker tilted his head kissed Abigail. “Like you.  Someone I could see myself having children with.” 

“And their Gran would be younger than their Dad.”  Walker laughed. “You know, I hadn’t thought about that, but it _would_ be kind of funny. “

“Wally, I do want to have children...one day.  But I’m only twenty-four.  I...is this a problem?”  Abigail looked up at Walker. Walker couldn’t help but give her another kiss. “No, of course not, Sweetheart.  As long as you don’t mind having an old man for a partner...”

“Haven’t minded yet, have I?”

Wesley began to stir.  He tossed and turned and flung his stuffed animal out of the bed and woke up crying and yelling.  Abigail and Walker were by his side in a minute. “Wes, what’s wrong?”  Abigail reached out to the boy and he curled into her chest.  “A-a-abby...I want Papa.....” Walker sat down on the bed and rested a hand on Wesley’s back. “Wes, don’t you remember?  You’re having a sleepover with me and Abby.”  Wesley shook his head and his tears continued to fall. “I want Papa.” 

“Wesley, did you have a bad dream?”  He nodded. “Do you want to tell us about it?”  He shook his head. “No. I want to tell Mommy and Papa.” 

“Wesley...Mommy and Papa aren’t here right now.  But you have Uncle Wally and me.  Please tell us what’s wrong?”

“Nooooo.”  Wesley crossed his arms. Abigail looked over at Walker.  She didn’t know what to do.  She knew Beverly and Jean-Luc had deactivated their badges for the night and all calls were being routed to Walker so they could have a proper wedding night, but surely it would be okay if she went across the hall and knocked on the door?  I mean, it was kind of an emergency...wasn’t it? 

Walker shrugged.  He knew Beverly and knew that if Wesley needed her, she would want to be interrupted, but he also knew this was a rare chance for the two of them to be alone.  He decided to try to talk to Wesley again.  “Wes?  Mommy and Papa are celebrating their wedding...do you remember earlier today?  You told Papa you wanted him to marry Mommy?”

“Uh-huh.” Wesley hiccupped. “An’ now my name is Wesley Picard!” 

“That’s right. And now they’re celebrating. So could you tell us what’s wrong?”

“No. Want Papa.” 

Walker sighed. “I’ll see if I can get him for you, alright?  But no guarantees.”  Walker rose from the bed.  “Wally, do you want me to go instead?”

“Nah,  if Johnny is going to be mad, let him be mad at me.”

“Papa will be mad?” 

“No, Wes.  I’m sure he won’t.”

Walker went across the hall and pressed the door chime as well as pounded on the door with his hand.  After a few minutes, the door was opened by a grumbling Jean-Luc wrapped in a sheet from the bed. “This better be important!” he grumbled before looking at who was at the door.  “Walker?  Is everything alright?” 

“Wally?”  Walker could hear noise as Beverly must have been pulling the blanket off the bed to wrap around her shoulders before coming out. “Is Wesley alright?”

“In a word...no.  He had some kind of bad dream, but refuses to talk to Abby or myself. He wants you, Johnny.” 

“Me?”

“He asked for you too, Bev, but he asked for his Papa more than once.”

“We’ll...ahh. just get our dressing gowns on first, I think.”  Beverly retreated to their bedroom and came back out clad in a silk dressing gown, with another tossed over her arm.  She passed the second gown to Jean-Luc and he hastily shoved it on and rushed across the hall to Walker’s quarters, Beverly trailing behind with a soft smile on her face. “Wally?  I think I made the right decision, don’t you? He absolutely adores Wes. Walker wrapped an arm around Beverly’s shoulder. “He loves you too, you know.”

“I know. I’m just so happy he cares for Wesley so much.” 

In the bedroom, Wesley was safely encircled in Jean-Luc’s arms. “Papa...where were you?”

“I’m sorry, Wes.  I’m sorry,”  Jean-Luc rubbed soothing circles on Wesley’s back. “Mommy and I were celebrating getting married today.”

“Without me?”

“Well...err...Wesley, there are some things adults do that children don’t.  Mommy and I were celebrating the adult way, but we’ll celebrate with you tomorrow, alright? After your lesson with Abby, we’ll do something just the three of us, ok?” Wesley’s response was muffled as he spoke it into Jean-Luc’s shoulder. “Now then, why don’t you tell me about your bad dream?” 

Wesley sniffed and left a trail of snot on Jean-Luc’s shoulder.  Walker observed Jean-Luc not noticing and nudged Beverly.  Beverly smiled.  “Yeah, right decision,” she whispered. 

“It was awful.  Daddy was bein mean to me an yellin an he tol me you don’t love me.” 

“Wesley....Wes, look at me.” Wesley looked up at Jean-Luc. “Wesley, I love you.  Never forget that.  No matter what anyone else ever says to you.  You are my son.” 

“I love you too, Papa.  Mommy?”

“Yes, Sweetheart?”

“I’m sowwy I ruined your party.”

“My party?”

“With Papa. Uncle Wally said you were cele...celebratin.”  Beverly grinned.  “Are you ok now?”

“Uh-huh.” 

“Can you stay with Uncle Wally and Abby until the morning?”

“Umm...okay.” 

“Good.  I love you Wesley.”  Beverly leaned down and kissed the top of Wesley’s head. “I love you too, Mommy.  Mommy, do I hafta love Daddy?”

“I suppose not. Why?”

“’Cos I love you an Papa an Abby an Uncle Wally...that’s a lotta people.”

“I see.  Wes, you can love as many people as you want.  That’s the nice thing about love.  It always makes room for other people.”

“Oh.  But I still don’t love Daddy.”  Beverly sighed. “One day you might, Wes. Now, do you want Papa and I to tuck you in again?  What happened to your bear?”  Wesley peered over the side of the bed where a tattered teddy bear was lying. “He fell outta bed.” 

“Well, that was silly of him. Here, let me put him back in bed with you.”  Beverly picked up the bear and tucked it into Wesley’s arms.  Jean-Luc gently detached Wesley from him and laid the boy back down on the bed. “Goodnight, Wes.  We’ll see you in the morning. “

“Night Papa. Night Mommy.”  The adults filed out of the room with Beverly taking one last look at Wesley before she turned out the light and closed the door.  She pressed her back against the door and gave a watery smile to Jean-Luc.  “Great start to our marriage, eh?” Jean-Luc pulled her close and kissed her “Shh. We couldn’t have known Wes would have a nightmare tonight.”  He turned to Walker and Abby.  “I think he’ll be okay now.  Usually he wakes up once but then sleeps through the night.”  Beverly grinned. “Know your son that well, do you?”

“I’m observant.”  Beverly leaned up and kissed him. “And that’s why I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“Right. Why don’t you lovers get back to...well, you know, I really don’t want to know what you were doing.  But go. Wesley will be fine and if he has any more problems we’ll come get you again.”  Jean-Luc chuckled. “Too mushy for you, Walker?” 

“Something like that, Johnny. Get out of here.”  Jean-Luc grinned. “Good night, Walker, good night Abigail.” Jean-Luc held his hand out to his wife. “Shall we?” 

“Mm. Night Wally. Night Abby.”  Beverly took her husband’s hand and let him lead her back across the hall to their quarters, where their robes were abandoned the minute the door slid shut. 


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kind words. I'm coping and I'm going to continue to write as writing is my outlet...but I don't think I can kill off Jack at this point.

Jack stirred when he heard the door to his room open.  “Whozzat?” 

“Jack, it’s me. Suzanne.” Jack struggled to sit up.  “Here, let me help you.” Suzanne adjusted the back of the bed to raise Jack up. 

“Suz...I can’t believe you’re here.” Suzanne patted Jack’s hand. “Well, you know, Jack. When my daughter asks me who her father is because they were looking for your adult daughter I thought I would come and see you, too.”

“Suz...I know we parted on bad terms and I’m sorry.  I shouldn’t have.  I should have stayed in Abigail’s life.”

“Yes, you should have. Especially when you realised you were serving with her.  You _did_ know she was your daughter, didn’t you?” Jack tried to laugh, but it came out as a cough. “How could I not? She was the spitting image of her mother.”

“Why didn’t you tell Beverly about us? Or Walker and Jean-Luc?”

“I was ashamed of how I had ended things with you.  I didn’t want Walker to know I had hurt you...I don’t know why I never told Beverly...I should have.”

“And the reason you didn’t tell Abigail in two years you were her father?”

“I...don’t know.  Suz....it’s still a little fuzzy.”

“I see. Jack, I need you to be honest with me.  Are Abigail, Wesley, and Annisyn’s baby your only children?” Jack frowned. “Annisyn? Was she...the nurse? Did I get one of Beverly’s nurses pregnant?”

“No, she wasn’t a nurse. Jack, I don’t know if I should be the one to tell you this, but Annisyn is a Lieutenant on the _Stargazer_.  You had an affair with her and she became pregnant.  You told her you would leave Beverly for her and her child.”

“Sure it’s mine?”

“Beverly did a DNA scan on the baby when Annisyn came for a check-up. Annisyn didn’t know Beverly was your wife at the time. You can imagine the shock that was for poor Beverly. And then to discover divorce papers from when she was pregnant with Wesley? How could you, Jack?”  A tear slipped from Jack’s eye. “I messed up, didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did.”

“Bev....happy?”

“With Johnny? Yes, Jack.  She’s happy with Jean-Luc.  He treats Wesley as if he was his own.”

“How long?”

“How long what? How long have Beverly and Jean-Luc been together?  If you’re asking if your ex-wife had an affair when you were married, I think that’s a little pot calling the kettle black, isn’t it?” 

“I guess.”

“It’s not my place to tell you about their relationship.  But I do know that he loves her very much and she loves him and you will not do anything to damage their relationship. Do I make myself clear?”  Jack barely nodded.  “Wes ok?”

“He’s wonderful.  Abigail became his tutor while you were ill. He’s a bright boy, Jack.  You should be proud of him.” Jack smiled.  “Can I see him?”

“You’ll have to ask Beverly and Jean-Luc.  We’re having breakfast together and I can tell them you want to see your son, but ultimately it will be their decision.  And Wesley’s, of course.  Did you ever stop to think Wesley might not want to see you?  How often have you even seen you son in his life?” Jack frowned. “Not much.”

“I didn’t think so. I didn’t want to believe Walker when he said Jean-Luc had seen Wesley more than his own father, especially when you were serving on the same ship...what were you doing instead of seeing your wife and son?”

“Dunno. Sex?” Suzanne rolled her eyes.  “Knowing you...Back to my question. Do you have any other children?”

“Dunno.  Maybe?  There was one woman...after you...before Bev....I can’t remember.” Suzanne frowned.  “I see.”

“I’ll get better, right? And remember?” Suzanne shook her head at her ex-husband. “You’ll have to ask your doctor about that. I’m sure there are tests they can perform and you still have to tell Jean-Luc what you remember about the accident.”

“How long?”

“You’ve been in a coma for almost three months.  Jean-Luc brought you here to Doctor Quaice, but that’s all I know.  I’m sorry I can’t tell you more.”  Suzanne glanced at the clock on the wall. “I need to go.  I just wanted...I needed to come talk to you.”  Jack reached out his hand for Suzanne’s and gave it a squeeze.

“Friends?”

“Hmm. We’ll see, Jack.”

###

For the first time in five years, Beverly was able to leisurely wake up.  There was no alarm, no emergency message from sickbay, and no five-year-old wanting breakfast.  But there was a delicious man in bed with her doing incredible things with his mouth.  Beverly slowly opened her eyes and reached out a hand to stroke the top of Jean-Luc’s balding head. “Mm, is this how you plan on waking me up every morning?”  Jean-Luc grinned around her nipple he had between his lips.  He gently bit it before moving his lips to hers.  “Good morning, wife.”

“Good morning, indeed.  What’s the time?”

“0800.  Everyone will be here in an hour.” Beverly pursed her lips as if debating something. 

“Something on your mind, my love?”

“Just trying to decide if we have enough time....” 

“Oh, we can make time.”

Neither heard the door to their quarters slide open and they didn’t become aware of the others in their quarters until Wesley opened the door to the bedroom and jumped on the bed. “Mommy! Papa!  Why you still sleeping?”

Bleary eyed, Jean-Luc looked beyond Wesley to see Walker standing in the doorway. “The door opened for Wes. Did we interrupt anything?”  Beverly blushed.  “Wally....get out of my bedroom!”   Walker held out his hands. “I’m leaving, I’m leaving. Come on, Wes. Let’s get breakfast out for everyone.”

“Kirkpops?” Jean-Luc gave Wesley a stern look.  “No.”

“But Papa!!”

“Wesley, you’ve had Kirkpops twice this week.”

“Aww, please?”

“No.” Wesley huffed. “Fine.”

“You can have porridge.”

“I hate porridge.”

“No you don’t. You just don’t want it right now. You like porridge.  We’ll put some berries in it for you, okay?”

“Ok.  Come on, Papa.”  Wesley reached for Jean-Luc’s hand to tug him out of the bed. “In a minute, Wes.  I need to get dressed first.”

“Mommy?”

“Wes, I’m not dressed yet either.  Go with Uncle Wally.  We’ll be out in a minute.”  The door slid shut and Jean-Luc started to laugh.  “Well...I guess earlier was our last quiet morning!”

“And you want to have another?” 

“Of course I do.  Wouldn’t change my mind for anything.” Jean-Luc leaned over and kissed his wife. “Hmm. You remember that when you’re on diaper duty.”

“I seem to recall changing Wesley’s diaper a few times....”

“Well, get used to it because if we have a baby, I will expect you to help out.”  Jean-Luc reached for Beverly’s hand. “Bev...I’m sorry Jack hurt you so badly...but I promise we are equal partners in this parenting thing with Wes or any other children. Except for the whole carrying them for nine months, because that’s all on you.”  Beverly grinned as she slid out of bed. “Right. Shall we get dressed before our son comes back in to find out what’s taking us so long?”  Jean-Luc groaned at the sight of his naked wife. “Mm, can’t we stay in bed longer? Send him out with Uncle Wally for the day?”

“Jean- _Luc_....”

“I know, I know.”  Jean-Luc regretfully got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom. “Want to shower with me? You scrub my back and I’ll scrub yours?”

The newlyweds joined the rest of their family a half hour later.  “Mommy, I’m hungry! You and Papa were gone for an awe fully long time...”

“Why didn’t you ask Uncle Wally to get your breakfast?”

“’Cos Papa said I could have berries in it.”  Jean-Luc wordlessly made his way over to the replicator and after replicating coffee for Beverly and him, ordered a bowl of porridge with “intergalactic berries” for Wesley.  He was mildly surprised to discover not only traditional Earth berries in the  bowl, but also green, yellow, and purple berries from other plants.  He set the bowl in front of Wesley at the table and motioned to the other adults in the room. “Did you eat yet?”

“No, we thought we’d eat as a family, Johnny.”

“Oh, right.” Turning back to the replicator Jean-Luc ordered a dozen croissants, a pot of apricot jam, a pot of strawberry preserves, butter, and a pot of coffee.  When the food materialized, he carried it over to the table while Beverly replicated plates, cups, and knives for the group.  

“Mommy, can I have a croy....croy sant?”

“Hmm. Finish your porridge, and you may have half a croissant.” 

“’Kay.”

The adults wanted to talk about Jack, but they knew Wesley was listening in, so instead Suzanne told a few stories about Abigail growing up that had her blushing and the others laughing.  Beverly told the story of the first time Jean-Luc had changed Wesley’s diaper and Wesley had chosen the exact moment the diaper had been removed to start peeing again, and it had gone all over Jean-Luc’s uniform.  Beverly couldn’t contain her giggles as she told the others about Jean-Luc emerging from Wesley’s bedroom holding Wesley at arms length  and asking Beverly if she could replicate him a new uniform.  “And of course, my replicator was only programmed for Lieutenant Commander uniforms so Jean-Luc had to borrow my pips just to walk out my door!”

“You couldn’t let people see you as a Lieutenant Commander, Johnny?”

“Absolutely not! I am a Captain, and a Captain deserves the respect of his subordinates...” he leered at Beverly and she kissed his nose. “Yes, Captain.  _My_ Captain.”

Wesley giggled. “Mommy, you’re silly.” 

“Right. Wesley, I think you have a lesson with Abby this morning, don’t you?”

“Aww but Mommy, she’s not my teacher anymore?”

“Why not, Wes?”

“Cos she’s my sister!”  Beverly pretended to think before replying, “You know, Wes. She’s both.  She’s your teacher _and_ your sister.”

“Oh, ok.  Do I still have to call her Miz Abby?”

“No, Wes. You can just call my Abby, alright?”

“Ok. Abby.  I’ll get my books now.”  Abby grinned and leaned over to kiss Walker. “See you for Lunch?”

“Sure.”

“Mom, what are you going to do today?”

“Well, I thought I would have a chat with your Captain and his beautiful wife.  And possibly the old man you’re dating.” 

“Hey!”  Jean-Luc nudged Walker. “She does have a point.” 

“You’re older!”

“By three months.”

“Still counts.”

“Suzanne, have they always been like this?” 

“Well, Beverly, they were when I first met your Jean-Luc when he was a first year at the Academy ,so I would say yes.” 

“Thought so.  Well, I have to go to Sickbay, do you want to meet me there in about an hour? We can use my office? I assume this is about...”

“Yes, it is. Abby, I hope you don’t mind if I talk to everyone without you.”

“No, Mom. I don’t.  You and Wally can tell me later.  Come on, Wes.  Today we’ll be touring Engineering.”

“YAY! Bye Mommy, Bye Papa! Bye Uncle Wally! Bye....lady.”  Suzanne laughed. “Wes, I’m Abby’s Mommy.”

“But I can’t call you Mommy, Mommy is Mommy.” 

“Well, how about you call me Aunt Suz?”  Suzanne looked to Beverly for approval and she nodded. “That’s a good idea. Wes, what do you think?”

“Ok.  Bye Aunt Sooz.”

“Goodbye, Wesley.  I hope we get to spend some time together later.” Suzanne turned to Beverly. “Might I ask your husband to give me a tour of the facility?  I’m not sure this one can be trusted,” she said poking Walker in the chest. Beverly laughed. “Of course you can. I’ll see you in about an hour?”  Suzanne nodded.  Jean-Luc put his arm out for Suzanne. “My, such manners, Johnny. I don’t remember you being this well-behaved when you were younger. In fact, I seem to remember you-“

“Right, let’s get going. See you later, Bev. Love you.” He leaned over to give Beverly a kiss but she held out her hand “Not so fast. I want to hear what Suzanne was going to tell us.”  Jean-Luc grumbled. “Nothing you don’t already know about my past, my love.”

“Ah, Beverly.  Johnny and Wally were out every night at the local clubs. I was only fifteen, but I used to sneak in and you should have seen the girls flock all over the young Cadets. I’m sure they were with different girls every night.”  Jean-Luc blushed. “Yes, well...I haven’t done that in a long time..not since I was stabbed.  Besides, I don’t think Beverly would have looked at me if I was still like that.”

“Damn straight.  Jack was bad enough!”  Jean-Luc pulled Beverly into his arms and kissed her. “Have I told you how sorry I am that I didn’t pay more attention to Jack’s exploits?”

“You did, but I’m happier with you, so it doesn’t matter.”  Beverly kissed Jean-Luc back. “Go. Give Suz a tour. I’ll see you all in about an hour.  I’m going to see if T’Sal is available....”  Jean-Luc grinned. “Really?”  Beverly nodded. “Told you I would.” Walker looked between the newlyweds. “I feel like I’m missing something.”

“Oh, Wally, let them be. They’re allowed to have their secrets.”

###

Beverly knocked on  the door to T’Sal’s office.

“Enter.”

“T’Sal, I wondered if you could do a favour for me?”

“Most likely.”  Beverly grinned. She loved working with a no-nonsense Vulcan and she would miss the woman once she was on the _Stargazer_.  “Jean-Luc and I got married yesterday and we would like to have a baby.  I wondered if you had time to remove my implant for me?”

“Congratulations on your marriage.  Yes, I have time to perform that for you.  Would you like to do it now?”  Beverly nodded.  “Have a seat.”

Beverly sat on the chair and watched. Of course, she knew how to remove the implants herself, but it was hard to do on your own arm so she watched as T’Sal expertly placed the device against the crook of her elbow and pinched it together.  A thin strand was soon extracted and T’Sal applied a handheld dermal regenerator to her elbow.  “We are finished.”

“Thank you, T’Sal.”

“I assume you will be leaving soon?”

“Er, yes.  I’m going to join Jean-Luc on the _Stargazer_.”

“Then, I wish you well, Beverly.”

“Thank you, T’Sal. I will miss you.”

Beverly wandered back into her office.  She glanced into Dalen’s office and saw Jack was awake and debated going in to see him.  With a sigh, she headed for the door at the back of Dalen’s office.  Jack was sitting up and able to turn his head when she entered.

“Beverly.”

“Hello, Jack. I thought I would come and check your vitals.”

“Bev...Help me?” Jack reached out a hand and grasped at Beverly’s and she pried her hand out of his. “Help you with what?  I can get a nurse if you need...”

“No, I don’t need the toilet.  I want to remember.  I hurt you, and I can’t remember what I did.”

“Really, Jack? You can’t think of anything you might have done over the course of our ten year relationship?” 

“Why divorce now?”

“Because I found out about Annisyn. Jack, I could have forgiven you for many things, but having an affair and getting her pregnant I could not.”

“You slept with Johnny.”  Anger rose in Beverly and she reached out and slapped him.  Alarm bells started to go off as Jack’s heart rate rose and Beverly didn’t care.  She shut off the alarm before anyone else came in and hissed at him “You will _not_ try to make me feel guilty for my relationship with Jean-Luc.”

“But...”

“No buts.” 

“I want to see my son.”

“Why?”

“Because...he’s my son.”  Beverly sighed. “That’s not a reason.  What if Wesley doesn’t want to see you?  Did you ever think about that?”

“He doesn’t?”

“Well, I don’t know.  But if he doesn’t want to see you, I’m not going to force him to.  I’m also not going to try to force Abigail, so don’t even ask about her!”  Jack grinned. “You treat her like...daughter.”

“Well, she’s Wesley’s sister. She may only be five years younger than me, but I like and care about her.”  Beverly slammed the PADD down into the holder on the edge of his biobed. “I’m leaving. Goodbye Jack. Maybe I’ll be back.” Beverly stalked out of the room before Jack had a chance to see the hot tears of anger that were coursing down her face. 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh, if I could just get paid to write fic, that'd be great, thanks.

As soon as Jean-Luc entered Beverly’s office, he knew something was wrong.  He came around the back of Beverly’s desk and perched on the edge of her desk. “Bev, my love, what’s wrong?”

“Jack Crusher.”

Walker and Suzanne entered Beverly’s office as she spoke. “Uh oh. What did Jackie do, Bev?”

“He’s insufferable.   He wants to see Wesley.  He tried to get mad at me for being with Jean-Luc.  He claims he can’t remember sleeping with Annisyn.  I slapped him.”  Jean-Luc’s eyebrows rose.  “You slapped him?”

“And I’ll do it again if he starts in on me. There was a reason I didn’t want to be involved with his care anymore.”  Jean-Luc reached forward to push a lock of hair behind her ear and pressed a kiss to her cheek.  “Then don’t be.  We can leave Jack here in Dalen’s care and all board the _Stargazer_ once it returns.  Gilaad is chomping at the bit to get to his new assignment...”

“Oh, can we?”

“I’ll speak to Command.  Tell them Jack needs to remain here for his recovery and put in for your official transfer. I can’t see Dalen denying your transfer, can you?” Beverly laughed. “No, I don’t think he would. What about Annisyn? Will you allow her to stay here?”

“It’s not a matter of allowing. She’s assigned to my ship and unless she takes leave or asks for a transfer to the base, she might have to leave with us.  Unless she needs to stay for medical reasons...” Jean-Luc looked hopefully at Beverly. “Her pregnancy is progressing fine, but I suppose  I could fudge things. I’d rather not have her around on the ship.”

“Suz, you can come with us too.  We could bring you back to Earth the slow way if you wanted so you could spend more time with Abigail.  We have to take the ship to McKinley for a new nacelle anyway.” 

“Thank you, Jean-Luc.  Perhaps I might even get some painting done.”

“I think we could set you up with some studio space.”

“Ah, Johnny?”

“Yes, Walker?”

“Have you, ah, thought anymore about living arrangements?”  Walker blushed as he asked the question.

“For you and Abigail?”  Walker nodded.  “Well, I think I’ll leave that to Abigail to decide. You’ll just have to ask her if she wants to live with you.”  Suzanne turned towards Walker. “Wally, something you’d like to tell me?”

“Not yet, Suz. Please.  Look, you know I love Abigail,  but I don’t think she’s ready for anything more than co-habitating.”  Suzanne gave Walker a knowing smile. “Well, I see you _do_ know my daughter well.”

“Now then, Suzanne.  Did you want to talk to all of us or Beverly on her own?  Walker and I can leave if you need us to.”

“No, Jean-Luc. I think we all need to talk.”  Suzanne lowered herself into a chair in front of Beverly’s desk and Jean-Luc lifted Beverly out of her chair to sit down in it with her on his lap.  “I saw Jack this morning...before we all had Breakfast. He seems...well, he’s not the man I was married to twenty years ago, that’s for sure.” Suzanne reached a hand out for Beverly’s and clasped it lightly. “Beverly, he asked me about seeing Wesley.  I told him I would mention it to you and Jean-Luc.”

“Absolutely not!” 

“Hang on, my love, shouldn’t we ask Wesley if he wants to see his father?”

“I’m not sure if it’s a good idea, Jean-Luc.  He told me he wanted to see Wes too and I told him we would think about it.  I just don’t know if Wesley could handle it.” 

“What if I go in with Wesley?”  Beverly pursed her lips. “That might work. Wesley would certainly feel safe with you and I know you would remove Wesley if he became upset. We’ll ask Wesley this afternoon if he wants to see Jack. But I’m not going to force him to go. Does Abigail plan on seeing him?”

Walker shook his head. “I don’t think she wants to, to be honest.  I think she will see him just because he is her father, but he’s not been in her life for twenty years and I have to admit, I don’t blame her for not wanting to see him. Frankly, I don’t want to go see him and I’ve known him for over forty years.”  Jean-Luc frowned.  “I’m not particularly fond of the idea, either, but I’m still his commanding officer so I don’t really have much of a choice.  I guess I should go now.”  Beverly scrambled out of his lap so he could stand and gave him a deep kiss that had Walker looking away and Suzanne blushing.  “I love you.” 

“I love you too.  Will you wait for me?”  Beverly nodded.  “Don’t forget, we told Wesley we’d have Lunch together.” 

“I won’t.”  With a wave to Walker and Suzanne, Jean-Luc smoothed down his uniform and headed for Dalen’s office. 

Dalen was sat behind his desk looking through some file when Jean-Luc knocked on the wall at the side of his door. “Doctor, is it a good time?”

“Come in, Captain.  I assume you’re here for an update on Commander Crusher?”

“And I thought I would drop in to see him.”  Dalen indicated for Jean-Luc to take a seat at his desk and Dalen shuffled through the PADDs on his desk. “Beverly has access to everything if she wants to look at anything.”

“Thank you, but I think she would prefer if his care is handled by you.  Jack...said some things to Beverly yesterday that upset her.  I think if you wanted her to take care of him as part of her duties as your junior, she would perform her duties, but....”

“Yes, perhaps it’s best if we limit his contact with Beverly.  He is progressing as well as can be expected.  Really, the only problems he still has are some of his organs have been damaged due to the lack of Oxygen.  We can help them by putting him on Oxygen several times per day, and some exploratory surgery to see if we can repair the damaged organs, but I won’t know much more about any lasting damage until then.  He won’t be returning to full duty for a long while, and I might even have to have him transferred to Medical on Earth. “

“And his memory?”

“I’m sorry, Captain.  I don’t know when or if he will ever regain all of his memories.  I think we should consider ourselves lucky he seems to only have lost a few months before his accident.  But I don’t think he’ll be able to tell you about the accident.  You can ask him, though.  Just keep an eye on the monitors above his head.  I noticed this morning his heart rate increased after Beverly had accessed his room.”

“She, ah...slapped him.”

“I see.  I should reprimand her for slapping a patient, but as it’s her ex-husband...I’ll let it slide.  You sure you want her on your ship, Captain?”  Jean-Luc chuckled.  “Dalen...I’ve been in love with Beverly for ten years.  I know what not to say to her.  Jack clearly does not.”  Dalen laughed. “One more thing, Doctor.  As soon as the _Stargazer_ returns to base, we would like to get underway again.  The ship needs repairs that can only be performed at McKinley and Beverly doesn’t want to be around Jack any longer than she needs to. I haven’t contacted command yet, but do you have any objections to Beverly transferring to my ship?”

“If I did, would you get her transferred anyway?”

“Probably.  But I do like to get permission from my crew’s current commanding officer before making a request.”

“Of course I will release her. But you have to promise the two of you will have dinner with my wife and I before you go.”

“I think we can arrange that.  Is Jack awake?”  Dalen motioned to the window behind him. “Just go in, Captain.”  Jean-Luc rose from his seat and held out his hand to shake Dalen’s hand. “Thank you for everything.”  Jean-Luc made his way into Jack’s room and Jack turned his head when the door opened.

“Johnny.”

“Jack, I’m not here as your friend right now. I’m here as your commanding officer. Lieutenant Commander Crusher, I need to know if you remember anything from your accident.”

“I...how’s Pug?”

“Dead.”

“Oh.  I remember...being outside and firing the phaser at the nacelle.....I remember it coming free and the nacelle exploded and a piece of it whacked me in the head.”

“Well, that explains the crack in your helmet.” 

“How did I get in the ship?”

“I rescued you.  I came out and found you and Pug and brought you back in.”

“Thank you.”

“Hmm.  Not sure why I bothered.  Do you know how much grief you’ve caused Beverly the past few months?” Jack glared at his friend. “Nothing you couldn’t handle, I’m sure.  She obviously went running into your arms and you gladly took her, didn’t you? You’ve wanted her for a long time, Johnny.  Why not steal a man’s wife when he’s down?” 

“Jack!  First of all, that’s not what happened at all.  Second of all, do I need to remind you about a certain Lieutenant of mine you managed to get pregnant? _Or_ about the divorce papers we found in your quarters?  Damnit Jack, you have no idea how hard I fought for you at first.  Do you know how much it broke Beverly’s heart when Lieutenant Lobo came in for a check up and the display stated the father of the baby was you?  She even performed a DNA scan to be sure Lobo wasn’t lying. How could you?  It’s one thing to have an affair, but to get a young girl pregnant?  And tell her you’d leave your wife for her?”

“Who’s  Lieutanant Lobo?”

“Annisyn.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t remember...”

“BULLSHIT JACK.  If you can remember your accident clear enough to tell me about it, you know damn well who Annisyn is.  Quit playing your selective memory game. I don’t buy it, and Beverly won’t, either.”

“I....”

“Talk.  I’d suggest bringing Walker in, but you know what, Jack? Walker doesn’t want to see you.  You’ve been best friends with the man for over forty years and he doesn’t want to see you. And you know why?”  Jack shook his head. “Because you couldn’t tell him the truth. You couldn’t tell him that you got his friend Suzanne pregnant, married her, and then divorced her before we shipped out.”

“He’s dating my daughter.”

“Oh, now Abigail is your daughter? How convenient.  Where were you when she was growing up?  Did you talk to Suzanne at all to get updates on your daughter?  When she was assigned to my ship, did you bother to tell me she was your daughter or did you tell her you were her father? No.  So drop the concerned father act. That goes for with Wesley too.”

“He’s my son.”

“Is he?  Biologically, sure. But do you know anything about your son?  Were you there when he had a chest infection and Beverly had been run ragged trying to balance her last year of residency and a baby?  Because I now know you weren’t .  I always made sure I gave you a few days before I came to visit Beverly and you were never there, and you know what Beverly did?  She _covered for you_.  She never told me you hadn’t shown up, just that you had gone out or had gone back to check on an experiment.  I only found out recently how absent you were in Wesley’s life. But now he’s your son?  Why?  Because I married Beverly and plan on adopting Wes?”

“I won’t let you.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows. “No?  Well, then I suppose Beverly will just have to file paperwork with ‘fleet to garnish your salary to provide her with adequate child support. Isn’t that what father’s do? Provide for their children?” 

“I...I love Beverly.”

“No, you don’t.  If you loved Beverly, you wouldn’t have had an affair.”   Jack mumbled something. “Sorry Jack, what was that?”

“She had an affair with you.”  Jean-Luc gave Jack a glare.  “Jack.  I will _not_ discuss my relationship with Beverly with you beyond saying that I was there for her when you weren’t.  Tell me Jack, were you _ever_ emotionally available to Beverly?  Why is it that when I look back on the past ten years of knowing Beverly that she always came to me when she was upset or called me to talk?  I foolishly assumed she contacted me after she talked with you, but I suspect now that you simply refused to be there for her. And how often have you even seen your son?  Because I know how often _I_ did. I would really like to know what you were doing instead of visiting your wife and child. On the other hand, maybe I don’t want to know.”

“I want to see my son.”

“We’ll see.  Beverly is going to ask him if he wants to see you and I promise you, if he says he does I will bring him to you.  But if he doesn’t want to see you, Beverly and I will not force him to.”

“But I’m his father!”  Jean-Luc only glared back and turned back towards the door. “Where are you going?”

“Leaving.  By the way, you can expect a reassignment as soon as you are well enough. I’m sorry, Jack, but I don’t think I can have you back as my second officer.”  Jean-Luc exited Jack’s quarters and didn’t stop back at Beverly’s office, but Beverly and Walker watched him stalk out of Sickbay and turn away from the corridor leading towards officer quarters and instead he headed towards the recreational area of the base. 

“Uh-oh.  Johnny looked mad.  Bev, do you want me to go after him?”

“Thanks Wally, but I think we should let Jean-Luc let off some steam, don’t you think?” 

“If I know Johnny, he’s going to go run laps, and then do a few lengths of the swimming pool.”

“Hmm. Swimming sounds like a lovely idea. Suzanne, would you like to join me?” 

“I’ve never been swimming on a starbase before, what’s it like?” Beverly’s eyes glimmered. “Ah, you’re in for a treat then! Wally, do you think Jean-Luc will go to the pool in the gym or come to the base pool?” 

“Probably the gym, but if you leave him a message, I’m sure he’ll come to you instead.” 

“Good idea.” Beverly fiddled with the console on her desk and sent a message to Jean-Luc.  His comm  badge would alert him to the message and then he could check it at any base computer. “Lets go. We can replicate swimsuits in the changing room.”

Jean-Luc looped back to his and Beverly’s quarters to grab his running shoes and then headed for the gym.  He replicated a set of Starfleet issued gym clothing and shoved his uniform in a locker.  His badge chirped to let him know he had a message, so he checked at a console. The message was from his wife. 

_Taking Suzanne swimming.  Take the time you need. Meet us at the pool. I love you – B_

Despite Jean-Luc’s anger, he managed to smile. Walker must have told her he usually goes swimming after running, though he usually swam in the gym’s pool and not the pubic facing pool, but if his wife was going to be there....thoughts of Beverly clad in a small swimsuit soon filled his head as he started his laps. 

Running had always been Jean-Luc’s way of letting off steam since he was a teenager and his father would yell at him for spending too much time studying astrophysics and not enough time in the vineyard. He used to run through the village and into the surrounding hills to keep himself from lashing out at his father, and running continued to be his choice for calming down.  Better than getting drunk or sleeping with the first thing he saw – which, if he was honest with himself, he had done in his youth at the Academy before returning to running.  Running gave him time to sort through the things that were bothering him as no one could speak to him and he never wore his comm badge.

His feet hit the track as he let his mind wander over everything.  As a Starship Captain, you never thought your life would end up being in a holo opera like _As the Galaxy Churns_ or _Lightyear of our lives_ , but it seems his old best friend had dumped him  - and everyone else – straight into the middle of one.  He had resisted his feelings for Beverly for many years but when she came to him asking him to comfort her, he couldn’t say no. He had a brief twinge of guilt over sleeping with Beverly while she was still married to Jack, but if Beverly felt no guilt over it, he shouldn’t either.  Even if Jack tried to make them feel guilty. 

But Jack really had no leg to stand on -  even though he and Beverly had started sleeping together before they found out about Annisyn being pregnant, Jack had obviously been cheating on Beverly for a long time and he had taken his affair with Annisyn one step further by getting her pregnant. Not to mention his plans to end his marriage with Beverly – twice.  When you add to it all the lying he had done and had forced Beverly to do as well, plus his treatment of Wesley...well, it was no wonder Wesley clung to Jean-Luc so much was it?  Wesley was starved for fatherly attention and even when he was still only known as Uncle Jawn Loo to the boy, he could still tell Wesley regarded him higher than he did his own father. 

Jean-Luc knew a thing or two about emotional abuse from a parent, having suffered under his own father for many years.  Jean-Luc was determined to be a better father to Wesley than Jack had ever been, and to be a better father than his own had been to him.  Jean-Luc would never push Wesley into doing something he didn’t want to, would always support Wesley (and any future children) in what they wanted to do, and most of all, Jean-Luc would love Wesley.  Something that while Jack claimed to....his actions spoke louder than words. 

Jean-Luc almost felt bad for Annisyn.  She was young and inexperienced and probably hadn’t expected to get pregnant.  Lobo had ambition and she had managed to finish her academy studies by the time she was nineteen and had come aboard his ship as a fresh-faced Ensign.  She had quickly impressed her superiors in stellar cartography and Jean-Luc had granted her the promotion to Lieutenant.  He suspected this was when Jack must have met her, but since Jack was pretending not to remember anything, he couldn’t be sure how long the affair had been going for.  Annisyn probably had been taken in by the older man’s charms and naturally believed him when he told her he would leave his wife for her. 

Jean-Luc knew, of course, that Jack was planning on leaving Beverly, however, he had serious doubts as to his commitment to Annisyn and if he would have stayed with her.  Jean-Luc shuddered to think about the possibility of Jack having other children out there. He was sure Jack must have been sleeping with someone else on the base when Beverly was pregnant and gave birth to Wesley. But whether it was anyone permanent or just random women, he had no idea.  And for Beverly’s sake, he probably didn’t want to know.

Sweat was pouring down Jean-Luc’s face and he used his sleeve to wipe it away, glancing at the pedometer he strapped to his wrist and saw he had already ran for six kilometres.  He usually ran for ten, and usually was calmed down by about the eighth or so kilometre.  Jean-Luc shook his head.  It might take longer today. 

He turned his thoughts to Abigail, his quasi step-daughter.  Now _there_ was an interesting family dynamic situation right there.  Poor Abigail.  Her boyfriend was best friends with her mother and father, and her boyfriend’s other best friend was married to her step-mother.  Her life truly was out of one of those cheesy holonovels.  Abby seemed to be coping with things well, all things considered.  Jean-Luc admired her greatly.  Twenty-four and to have all of this suddenly land in her lap along with her promotion and new position...with another one coming once they were back on the _Stargazer_.  Jean-Luc supposed he could get accused of nepotism if anyone really looked into their relationship, but she was a qualified teacher AND Starfleet officer and was perfect for the job of educating the young children on board the ship. 

There had been no formal form of education on the _Stargazer_ before, simply because Jean-Luc had always chosen to ignore the children.  However with Wesley in his life and hopefully a child with Beverly, Jean-Luc had to think about the educational needs of the children. Besides which, this would set Abigail up for a position on one of the Galaxy-class ships that were currently in development.

Jean-Luc pushed himself harder and thought about the latest addition to their family, Abigail’s mother, Suzanne.  Jean-Luc remembered meeting Suzanne when she was fifteen and he had come home for the Academy break with Walker as he hadn’t wanted to return to the vineyard.  Walker had introduced Jean-Luc to Suzanne as his “third little sister”. Walker may have lost touch with her, but they seemed to be picking up their relationship again.  And Beverly and Suzanne were hitting it off. Whether it had to do with them both being hurt by Jack, or just that they were both strong women, it didn’t matter.  Jean-Luc was pleased for Beverly, as he knew she hadn’t had many friends growing up and even at the Academy she hadn’t had many friends, preferring to spend her time studying. Once she had been introduced to Jack and Jean-Luc, Jean-Luc had arranged for her to complete her studies on the _Stargazer_ , so she hadn’t had much opportunities to develop friendships with other women.  

Jean-Luc’s lungs felt like they would burst and his artificial heart was pumping much faster than a regular heart could.  Jean-Luc reduced his speed gradually, decreasing to a light jog and then walking to cool his muscles down.  His legs ached as he stripped off his running clothes and went into the locker room showers to rinse off.  He let the hot spray work at his back and calves and wished Beverly was in the shower with him.  He groaned as he dried off. Best not to think of your wife when you were in a men’s locker room.  He wrapped a towel around his waist and was surprised when he exited the shower to see Walker sitting on a bench in the locker room, clad in a pair of swimming trunks.  Wordlessly, Walker passed Jean-Luc a pair of trunks and a T-shirt he had replicated for his friend. 

“Better now?”

“A little bit, Walker...that man infuriates me.”

“Now you know why I don’t want to see him.  I probably would punch him, and you know it’s no good to punch a man when he’d down.”

“I wish I had punched him, but it would look bad for his superior officer to hit him. Same goes for you, Number One.  At least Beverly got a slap in.”

“He deserves that and more.”

“He certainly does. Now, can I assume Beverly sent you to make sure I come meet her at the pool?”

“Actually, the girls – Beverly, Suzanne, and Abby – are waiting for us with Wesley.  Seems we’re having a family fun day.”  Walker grinned at his friend and Captain.  “Can the Captain let down what little hair he has left for an afternoon?”  Jean-Luc shoved Walker’s shoulder. “Oi, don’t you start!”


	17. Chapter 17

Suzanne gazed around at the recreational pool.  “I can’t believe this is on a starbase. It’s incredible!”

“Well, this is one of the main space ports for jumping off to the rest of the quadrant. Sometimes people have to wait for weeks to catch their next shuttle, plus it’s one of the main stops for shoreleave for Starfleet, so we have lots of facilities that cater to recreation.”  Beverly and Suzanne were standing in what could only be described as a resort. The large swimming pool dominated the room and above it on the ceiling were holoprojections  of a clear blue, sunny sky. Palm trees lined the side of the pool and the temperature was quite tropic. 

Beverly directed Suzanne over towards the changing rooms.  “We can replicate suits.” Beverly eyed the options and settled on a simple jewel-toned bikini, while Suzanne opted for a one piece.  Beverly replicated sarongs and picked up some towels.  “Right, now we stake out a place.”  Suzanne found an empty umbrella covered table with several lounge chairs behind it and pointed at it “Over there?”

“You know, I think Wesley might enjoy an afternoon at the pool.  Beverly pulled her comm. Badge off her uniform and tapped it.  “How—Picard to Yugen.”  Beverly grinned at Suzanne. She wasn’t quite used to her new name yet.

_“Yugen here.”_

“Abby, how is Wesley doing this morning?”

_“Fine, Bev.  We toured engineering and he’s currently working on  a project with one of the engineers that’s gone above my head.  Why?”_

“Your mother and I are at the pool, and wondered if you wanted to bring Wes here after his lessons to join us. You too, obviously.  Walker will be here with Jean-Luc later.”

_“Do you want me to ask Wes?”_

“I don’t think he’d say no, but go ahead.” 

_“Wesley, would you like to go swimming this afternoon?”_

_“Yeah!!!”_

_“Bev, I think that’s a yes.”_

 Beverly grinned. “We’ll have Lunch here. See you soon. Picard out.”

Suzanne lounged on one of the lounge chairs. “Bev, do we need to worry about sun protection?”

“No.  We can sunbathe, but it won’t actually alter our pigment. That’s why there’s a tanning booth over there.”  Beverly pointed.

“Hm, I think I’m going to like it here.”  Beverly laughed and lowered herself into the chair next to Suzanne. 

“Mm. Watch this.” Beverly pressed a button on her armrest and a young man in a swimsuit carrying a tray came over.  “Two margaritas, please.”  A few minutes later, the man reappeared and handed Beverly and Suzanne their drinks. “Day drinking with drinks delivered straight to our chair?  I may never leave.”

“I don’t come here nearly as often as I should.  When Wes wants to swim, I usually just use the staff recreation facilities.  I suppose with us moving onto the _Stargazer_ , this may be one of our last chances to enjoy this.”

“Are you happy to move to the ship?”

“Yes and no.  I enjoyed life on a starship before I was pregnant with Wes.  I don’t know how Wesley will cope.  The _Stargazer_  isn’t a particularly small ship, but it’s not as large as the base.”

“But there will be other children? Abigail said Jean-Luc was promoting her and giving her a job teaching?” Beverly nodded. “I think there’s about a dozen children on board.   You have to get permission from the Captain to bring your family on such a small ship, and even though Jean-Luc had a bad experience when he was a Lieutenant with some children on board, he has never said no if asked.  I think that’s why it shocked me when Jack told me I couldn’t stay on the _Stargazer._ I probably should have gone straight to Jean-Luc to ask him and then I might have left Jack sooner...or not married him at all....but...”

“But then you might not have Wesley.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t have been able to terminate the pregnancy.  I just don’t know if Jean-Luc would have wanted to be with me back then.”  Suzanne raised her eyebrows. “Beverly, from what Wally was telling me...Jean-Luc has been in love with you for years.”  Beverly blushed. “Maybe.  Well, it’s in the past now.”

Suzanne sighed. “Speaking of the past...Jack wants to be friends with me.”

“After all this time? I hope you told him to go to hell.”  Beverly took a sip of her margarita and closed her eyes. “Mmm.”

“Well....not quite.  I told him we’ll see.  A part of me wants to give him a chance to be my friend, but then I remember him leaving me and Abigail and how heartbroken I was.  I was afraid to contact Wally because I knew he was going to be on the same ship as Jack and I didn’t want to make things awkward for them.”

“Hm. So, tell me, are you _really_ okay with Abigail dating Wally?  I think it’s getting pretty serious between them....”

“I’ve known Wally all my life.  I trust him.  It’s a big age gap though – twenty-four years. How many years between you and Jean-Luc? “

“Nineteen. Fifteen between me and Jack.”

“And you don’t mind having older husbands?”

“Not at all.  Although with Jack, we sort of fell into being married because I was pregnant. The only concern between Jean-Luc and I is he is worried about us having children when he’s ‘old and feeble’ as he calls it, but honestly, I’m not worried. He keeps himself active.  With the exception of his artificial heart, he’s probably in better shape than most other forty-eight year-old men.”

“Jean-Luc has an artificial heart?”  Beverly covered her mouth, then nodded. “I’m sorry, Suz, I assumed you might have known.  Jean-Luc doesn’t like word getting around, but since you’re basically family I think it would be ok. He got into a fight with some Nausicaans when he was fresh out of the Academy.  Wally was there.  They were playing Dom Jott  with two other friends when these Nausicaans challenged them to a game and their  friend Corey accused the Nausicaans of cheating.  A fight broke out, and one of the Nausicaans stabbed Jean-Luc from behind straight through his heart.  I shudder to think what might have happened if Wally hadn’t been quick to alert a medical team. “

“No, I didn’t know.  Is that when he sobered up?”

“Yeah.  He stopped sleeping around and stopped drinking so much.  Now he only drinks wine – French wine, I might add – and the occasional brandy or whisky.  Even when Wally introduced him to Jack and they all would go out together, Jean-Luc was always the sober one.”

“And Wally introduced you to Jack and Jean-Luc?”  Beverly nodded.  “Wally was one of my mentors my first year.  We ran into each other by accident at one of the bars near campus and he introduced me to his friends.  I became close with all three of them and a few months later started dating  Jack.  Boy, that was a mistake.  I should have dated Jean-Luc from the beginning, but I think at that point he was worried about our age difference and how it would have looked for a Captain to date a Cadet.  At least, that’s what I tell myself is the reason he didn’t pursue me.”  Suzanne laughed.  “I’m sure it was.  He’s certainly smitten with you.” 

“I’m just as smitten with him!  You mentioned painting before, are you an artist? Would I know any of your work?”

“Oh, I doubt it. I’m not well-known or anything like that, but I have sold a few pieces to some of the Embassy’s and a few to some of the high ranking admirals.  I went to art school. Panting was my passion...still is.  I took some time off to have Abigail, but I returned to school when she was five and I’ve been painting ever since.  I hope I get to see lots of new things on the _Stargazer_ to give me some inspiration.”

“Do you paint portraits, or just landscapes?”

“I’ve done a few portraits, though I enjoy the landscapes more.  Painting portraits involves having to work with people,” Suzanne shuddered, “And if they don’t like how you painted them, you either have to start all over, or you lose out on part of your commission because they refuse to pay up!”

“Oh, that’s terrible!  I was just wondering about having you paint a family portrait some day-“ Beverly was cut off by the voice of her five-year-old.

“Mommy!!!”  Wesley came running up to Beverly and Suzanne, with Abigail trailing behind.  “Where’s Papa?”

“He’s with Uncle Wally. They’ll be here soon.  Should we go get you changed into a swimming costume?” 

“Yeah.”

“Abby, do you want to tag along?  The replicator in the changing room can make any style suit you want.” 

“Sure.”

“I’ll hold down the fort here in case the boys show up.” Suzanne said.  Wesley laughed. “Mommy, why do you and Aunt Sooz keep calling Papa and Uncle Wally boys when they’re men?”

“Ah, we like to tease them, Wes.”

“Oh.  Mommy, can I have a red swimsuit?”

“Sure, but why Red?”

“Cos Papa wears a red uniform!” Beverly rolled her eyes at Suzanne, ,but allowed Wesley to drag her towards the changing room.  When they returned ten minutes later, Wesley was clad in a pair of red shorts and he had bright yellow floats on each arm.  Beverly took him into the shallow end of the pool and Wesley was having fun splashing around and trying to swim. 

Jean-Luc and Walker arrived and Jean-Luc surveyed the group. Beverly was in thigh-high water with Wesley clinging to her arms, paddling his legs, while Abigail was sitting on the edge of the pool with her legs dangling in the water and Suzanne was still on one of the chairs, reading a magazine.  Jean-Luc kicked his shoes under the table and took off his T-shirt before getting into the pool from the side away from Beverly’s line of sight.  He inched slowly over to her in the pool and wrapped his arms around her. Beverly leaned back into the embrace.  “Hmm. Better not tell my husband...” 

Wesley giggled. “Mommy, it’s Papa!” 

“Is it?”  Beverly twisted around with Wesley still clinging to her arm and pretended to be surprised. “So it is.  Hi,”  She gave Jean-Luc a quick kiss.  “Feeling better?”  Jean-Luc nodded and left his arms around Beverly’s waist.

“Papa, were you sick?”

“No, Wes.  Why do you ask?”

“Cos Mommy just asked if you were feeling better.” 

“Ah, No Wes, I’m fine.  How is the swimming?”

“It’s a lotta fun, but Mommy made me wear these things on my arms so I don’t drownded.” Jean-Luc pretended to look solemnly at his son. “Do you think I should wear some, too? I wouldn’t want to drown.”

“Noooo.....they’re only for kids.”

“Oh, I see.  Right then. Would you like to go into some deeper water?” 

“Mommy, can I?”  Beverly nodded. “Let Papa hold onto you though, alright?”

“’Kay Mommy.” Jean-Luc gave Beverly another quick kiss and whispered “By the way, you look lovely.”  before Wesley latched onto his neck.  Beverly watched as Jean-Luc carried Wesley into some deeper water, but didn’t go further than he could stand.  The water was up to Jean-Luc’s shoulders and he gently had Wesley remove his hands from his neck and instructed Wesley how to float on his back.  Jean-Luc kept a cautious hand under Wesley just in case the armbands didn’t work.  Wesley kicked his feet “I swimming, Papa!”

“Yes, you are.  Good job, Wes!”  Wesley smiled.  “Papa, I love you.”

“I love you too, Wes.”  A woman nearby smiled at the interaction and looked back over to where Beverly was now sitting on the side of the pool with Abigail.  She wandered over to Beverly. “Are they yours?”

“Yes.”

“Your husband is such an amazing father.  I wish my husband was as attentive as yours with our children.” 

“Mm, thank you.  He’s very devoted to us.”  The woman got out of the pool and Beverly and Abby shared a giggle.  “Jean-Luc better watch out or all the other fathers on base will gang up on him for being too good of a father!”  Beverly continued to giggle. “On the other hand, Bev, that’s probably not a bad thing!”

“No, you’re probably right. I’m so glad he’s taken to Wes so easily.”

“He’s yours, of course Jean-Luc would take to him.”  Walker came up to the pair and sat down next to them.  “I see Johnny’s out there with Wes.  How are my ladies doing?” Beverly shoved Walker. _“Your_ ladies?”

“Fine. Johnny’s lady and my lady. Better?”

“Hmm. I prefer not to be owned at all, thank you very much.”  Beverly slipped into the water and swam over to Jean-Luc and Wesley.  “Uh-oh.  I know that look. Beverly’s going to be plotting revenge on me.”

“Happen often to you, does it?”

“My dear, one thing you need to learn about my friends and I...we like to play pranks and plot revenge on each other.  All in fun, I might add.” Walker slid into the pool and faced Abigail with her legs on either side of him.  He inched his hands around her waist and kissed her.   Abigail looked back at her mother, still lounging in her chair, reading. “Wally, is Mom okay?”

“I think so, why?”

“I dunno.  We’re a couple...Beverly and Jean-Luc are a couple...Mom doesn’t have anyone and I worry about her.”  Walker leaned over and kissed her cheek. “We’ve talked a little bit.”  Abigail raised her eyebrows. “Well, I had to make sure she really was okay with me dating you.”

“And if she wasn’t?”

“I would probably date you anyway.  But I think your mom is perfectly happy with her life.  If she wants to date, I’m sure she’d put herself out there.” 

“I guess you’re right.” Abigail looked over at the Picards and laughed.  “They can’t seem to keep their hands off each other, can they?”  Wesley had been given a kickboard and he was swimming independently around his parents.  Beverly had wrapped her legs around Jean-Luc’s waist and Jean-Luc was kissing her. Walker turned around to glance at his friends.  “Publicly kissing, too.  My, my, Johnny.” 

The couple got a few dirty looks. One woman was heard grumbling about how it was a family pool and how could they act like that in front of their child, and another thought Beverly was still married to Jack and that Jack was still unconscious and was gossiping to her friend about how brazen Beverly was for flaunting her affair like that while her husband was unconscious.  Suzanne heard, and strode over to the gossiping women and must have said something to set them straight because the ladies hung their heads and fell silent.  Suzanne  sat down next to Abigail and grumbled. “Busybodies no matter where you go.” 

“You seemed to handle them.”

“I can’t have them spreading rumours about Beverly and Johnny, can I?”  Walker smiled. “You’re a good friend.”

Wesley swam over to them with his kickboard. “Look Uncle Wally! I’m swimming!!” 

“I see that.  Where did Mommy and Papa go?”  Jean-Luc swam over. “There you are!  Wesley, you worried us when you swam away.” Jean-Luc motioned to Beverly, who had been on the other end of the pool and she swam over.  “Wesley Robert Picard! You frightened us!”  Walker grinned at Jean-Luc.

“Picard? Is it official?”

“Not yet, but soon.”

“Mommy, I’m hungry.” 

“Hmm, I suppose it’s getting on for Lunch time. Shall we?”  Everyone nodded.  Jean-Luc headed for the replicator. “Sandwiches alright for everyone?” 

Jean-Luc returned a few minutes later. “There’s a queue.  I put in our order and someone will bring it to us.” He settled down in one of the lounge chairs and Wesley sat between his legs.  “Papa, I can’t get the swimmies off!”

“What’s a swimmie?”  Wesley pointed at his arm floats.  “Ah.  Well, let’s see if we can get them off.”  Jean-Luc carefully tugged at the inflatable device. “Ow. Papa, that hurts!” Jean-Luc grinned at Walker. “Walker, I’m an astrophysicist, not an engineer. Come here and help Wes.”

Walker’s solution was to deflate the arm bands.  With his arms free of their floats, Wesley got up and asked if he could play in the sand.  “Sand?  There’s sand here too?”  Wesley nodded. “Uh-huh. Aunt Sooz, I can show you!”  With a backwards glance at the others, Suzanne allowed Wesley to drag her away to the beach area. 

Beverly sat on the edge of Jean-Luc’s lounger. “Budge over.” Jean-Luc grinned wickedly at her and  grabbed her around the waist tugging her onto him . “Hello.”  He placed a wet kiss on her cheek and she laughed.  “You are ridiculous.” 

“I try.”

“Oi, lovebirds, none of that!”  Beverly stuck her tongue out at Walker. “Leave us alone, we’re newlyweds.”

 “Hmm, since I have you and Abigail are here....I want to take Beverly on a honeymoon, but naturally, we can’t leave Wesley behind.  Would you two like to come with us and act as babysitters so Beverly and I can have some time alone?”  Walker exchanged a look with Abigail.  She grinned. “Where are we going?”

“Ooh, let’s go to Risa!”

“Wally! My son is five.  We’re not taking him to Risa!”

“Sorry, Bev.”

“Actually, I was thinking of Pacifica.  I told Wesley I would take him there to show him the fish when we were at the aquarium.”  Walker raised his eyebrows. “Planning on re-creating our last trip only this time you get to go home with the girl?”

 _“Walker!”_  Beverly turned to look at Jean-Luc. “What does he mean?”

 

“Nothing. Walker means nothing.”

 

“Oh, I think we should tell the fair lady.  After all, she now knows how long you have been in love with her.”  Jean-Luc sighed. “Fine. You tell her.”

“Bev, do you remember our trip to Pacifica?”  Beverly nodded. “We were celebrating my acceptance into Medical.  Oh, we got so drunk!”  Beverly laughed, but sobered when she saw the pained look on Jean-Luc’s face. “Jean-Luc, are you alright?”

“I’m fine, my love. The story is just...uncomfortable for me.”

“Johnny, you were a complete gentleman to Beverly that night and didn’t take advantage of her, I’d say you have no reason to feel uncomfortable.”

“Take advantage of me? What happened?”

“Bev, you really don’t remember?  You got so drunk you stripped off your bikini and wanted to go skinny dipping.”

“I remember the skinny dipping.  Jack wouldn’t go with me, but Jean-Luc and you did.” Beverly’s eyes went wide.  “Oh my God, Jean-Luc.  I wrapped myself around you in the water.”

“You did.” Jean-Luc cast his eyes down. Abigail, sensing this was something the three of them needed to discuss without her, got up and went off in search of her mother and Wesley.  Walker gave her hand a quick squeeze as she walked past.  “Is that why you’re embarrassed?  Jean-Luc, I honestly hadn’t remembered any details until just now.”  Jean-Luc studied his hands.  “I’m sorry, my love. I should have told you...”

“No, I would have only been embarrassed too.  I mean, we were naked and I practically tried to have sex with you in the water.  I honestly don’t remember anything from that night.”

“I carried you to our cabana and put you to bed. Jack was nowhere to be found. And you...”

“I asked you to hold me.”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “And you did. Jean-Luc, I remember that part.  You kissed me, didn’t you? And then you apologized.  See, I do remember what happened and if anyone should be embarrassed it should be me.”  She tilted his head up and gave him a kiss.  “Besides, now I remember that Wally has seen me naked.” 

“And what a beautiful sight you were, Bev.”  Beverly swatted him. “Oh stop.  We seem to have chased off Abigail.  Should I go off in search of her?”

“I think she went to find Wes and her mom.  I see the server coming with our food. I’ll go get them.”  Walker stood up and left the couple snuggled up on the lounge chair together.  It was incredible how open Jean-Luc seemed to be with his affection now that he was married to Beverly.  It was certainly a new side of Jean-Luc Walker hadn’t seen before.


	18. Chapter 18

Wesley was eating his breakfast the following morning when Beverly and Jean-Luc decided to ask him if he wanted to see Jack.

“Wesley,  Papa and I need to talk to you about something.”

“Am I getting a little sister?”

“Er...no.  Not yet.”  Beverly exchanged a glance with Jean-Luc.  She had only had her implant out for less than 24 hours. But it was good to know Wesley was on board with the idea. Of course, they might have a boy, but they’d cross that bridge when they got to it. “We need to talk to you about Daddy.”

“Why?”

“Your father would like to see you before we move onto the _Stargazer_.”

“But, Papa is my father.”

“He is, but we mean your...other father.  Daddy.”

“Do I hafeta?”  Jean-Luc rested his hand on Wesley’s shoulder. “No, my boy. It’s your decision, and I told Ja...your father that if you didn’t want to see him I would not force you to.”

“Is Abby going?”

“I don’t know.”

“Will you go with me, Papa?”  Jean-Luc smiled. “Of course I will, Wes.  We can even ask Uncle Wally if he’ll come with us too. Would you like that?”  Wesley nodded.  His Uncle Wally was fun.  “Mommy, are you going to go too?”

“No, Wes. I already spoke with your father.” 

“Papa, can I bring Mr Wiggles with me?”  Jean-Luc sighed.  He knew that if Wesley took his teddy bear with him, he would wind up having to hold him and it was a bit undignified for a Captain to be walking around with a stuffed toy, but if it would make Wesley more comfortable....”Of course, Wes.”

“An can I wear my red jumper?” 

“Uh, sure Wes, but why?”

“Cos Papa, your uniform is red!” Jean-Luc tried to hide his grin.  “Yes, of course you can.  Let me talk with Uncle Wally and we’ll go after you finish your breakfast.” Jean-Luc turned to Beverly and gave her a kiss. “It’ll be alright.  Walker and I will remove Wesley immediately if he starts to get distressed.”

“I’ll come and use my office.  I need to start to pack things up anyway and then I can be there if Wesley needs me, though with you around, I don’t think he needs his Mommy anymore.”  Beverly pretended to pout, but she couldn’t hide her smirk.  She was overjoyed at the role Jean-Luc had dropped into in Wesley’s life and wouldn’t have it any other way .

###

“Do you think I should go see him?”

“Who?”

“Jack. Er...Dad. You know, I can’t really see him as Dad.  It’s not we were ever close but...”

“Maybe you should talk to Johnny.  I had a good relationship with my father, but I know Johnny had a rocky relationship with his.” 

“Good idea,” Abigail pressed her communication badge. “Yugen to Pi..Captain Picard.”

_“Picard here.  Everything alright, Lieuenant?”_

“Yes, Sir. I was wondering if I could speak with you?”

_“Of course. Is Commander Keel with you?”_

“Yes.”

 _“I’ll be over in a minute. Picard out.”_ Abigail could hear breakfast noises in the background and briefly felt bad taking the Captain away from his new family.  She hoped he wouldn’t be upset with her.  The door to her and Walker’s quarters chimed. “Come in.” 

Walker passed his friend a cup of tea.  “Mornin’ Johnny.  Abby would like to speak with you....I told her you would be better to talk to than me.”

“I...see. Personal or professional?”

“Personal.” Jean-Luc nodded. “Before Abby and I speak, Wesley would like you to come with us to see Jack.  I told Wes we would go after breakfast if you’re willing to come along.” Walker grimaced. “I’m still pretty pissed at Jack, but you know I’ll do anything for Wesley.”

“Thanks. Now, Abby, what did you want to talk about?” Abigail smiled at the use of her nickname, and took it as permission to use the Captain’s first name.  She still had a long way to go to learn how to separate her personal relationships with everyone from her professional, but as long as she was given cues from her superiors, she was pretty sure she would be fine.  “Jean-Luc, I wanted to get your opinion on if I should go see Jack...er...Dad.”

“I see. And Walker suggested me because of my own relationship with my father.”

“Um...Yes?”  Abigail looked down. “It’s alright, Abby.  It’s not a secret.  My father was a very  belligerent man.  We clashed from the time I was a small boy and wanted to look at the stars and build model ships instead of tending to the vines. When I left for the Academy it wasn’t on good terms and I never felt welcome at home again.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s alright. My brother now runs the family business and I maintain correspondence with his wife, but I doubt I will get the chance to show my son where I grew up unless something changes.  But enough about me.  Tell me what’s on your mind?”

“I don’t remember anything about my father.  Mom said he only saw me a few times before he divorced her, and then my only other contact with him had been when the Academy put money in my account.  And I barely knew Commander Crusher. I saw him a few times, but...”  She trailed off and lowered her eyes to study a lose thread on her uniform.  Jean-Luc took a sip of his tea before speaking.

“I see.  And you don’t know if you should see him now.”

“No.  I don’t.  I heard you’re taking Wesley?”

“I am.  Much as I’d rather not see Jack Crusher again, I promised Wesley I would stay with him.  Walker is coming too.  If you want, you could come with us?”

“No.  I... wouldn’t want Wesley to see me if I got angry.”

“I see. Well, if you’d like me to accompany you...as your Captain....your friend....as your _family_ , I will.  Abigail, I’m not one for a lot of touchy-feely moments, but Beverly is slowly drawing them out of me. And I know you’re not my daughter or sister, but I want you to know that if Beverly treats you as family, I’m going to treat you as family.  Plus, you’re my son’s sister.  That has to make us related somehow.”  Jean-Luc grinned.

“Step-Step-Father-Uncle-Brother?”  Walker supplied. 

“Quite.”  Jean-Luc tried to hide his amusement.  He supposed all of those _were_ his relation to Abigail...married to her step-mother, ‘brother’ to her father, and ‘brother’ to her boyfriend...Jean-Luc shook his head. “Let’s just settle on being Jean-Luc and Abigail, alright?”  Abigail nodded. 

“I’ll let you know if I want to go see Jack...Dad...Maybe I should talk to Mom, too.” 

“An excellent idea.  Now, if you’ll excuse Walker and I, we have an appointment with my son.” 

“Please tell Wesley I expect him to complete the worksheets I gave him yesterday morning.” 

“Of course.  Walker, are you ready?” Walker shook his head. “As I’ll ever be.  Johnny, you might have to restrain me from punching that bastard.” Jean-Luc rolled his eyes.

###

Wesley clung to Jean-Luc’s hand with his teddy bear in the other as they approached Dalen’s office.  Beverly stayed in her own office, and Jean-Luc knew she was anxiously pacing back and forth.  Jean-Luc knelt down to Wesley’s height. “Are you ready, Wesley?”  Wesley nodded, but didn’t let go of Jean-Luc’s hand. “Alright.  Remember, anytime you want to leave, you tell me or Uncle Wally and we’ll go.”

“Ok. “

“And remember Wes, your Mommy and I love you.”

“I love you too Papa!”  Walker opened the door and Jack turned to look at the door. He scowled when he saw Jean-Luc, but gave a smile for Wesley.

“Wesley!  Son, come and see your Daddy.”  Wesley shrank back from Jack and hid behind Jean-Luc’s leg.  Jean-Luc looked apologetically up at his former friend. “I’m sorry, Jack. The last time Wesley saw you you were...well, there were a lot of tubes and machines.”  Jean-Luc once again knelt down to Wesley’s height, causing Jack to scowl again. 

“Wesley, it’s alright.  He doesn’t have any  of those scary tubes attached to him right now. Only a few monitors.”  Wesley nodded.  “Ok, Papa.”

Jack’s look turned murderous. _Papa? He’s calling Johnny Papa?_   Walker saw the look on Jack’s face and leaned in. “That’s right, Jackie.  Wesley considers Ol’ Johnny there to be his Papa. Not you.  Johnny.” 

Wesley approached the bed cautiously.  He still had his bear clutched in on hand, but he had let go of Jean-Luc and Jean-Luc rested a hand on Wesley’s shoulder so the boy knew he was still with him. “Come on, son. Give your old man a hug.”  Wesley shook his head. “No.”

“Aw come on, please?”

“I don’t wanna.”

“Wesley, come and hug your father.” Wesley was getting agitated.  His voice rose and tears sprung to his eyes as he yelled “NO!  I DON’T WANNA. YOU’RE NOT MY PAPA!”  Wesley turned and buried his face in Jean-Luc’s leg.  Jean-Luc carefully picked up the five-year-old and held him close. “Wes, it’s alright. You don’t have to hug him if you don’t want to. No one is going to force you to, alright?”  Wesley sniffed, but nodded.  “Papa, I don’t like the man on the bed.”  Jack’s eyes went wide and he slumped against the bed.  Had he really alienated his son?  The same way he had alienated his daughter? 

“Shh, Wes.  It’s alright.  It’s going to be fine. Do you want to leave?”  Wesley nodded.  Jean-Luc turned to Jack. “I’m sorry, Jack.  I promised Wesley that if he wanted to leave I wouldn’t force him to stay.  Maybe we’ll try again before we ship out.”  With a nod to Walker,  Jean-Luc exited the room still carrying a sniffling Wesley.

“This is all Johnny’s fault.  He turned my son against me!” Walker shook his head. “No, Jack. _You_ turned your son against you.  Tell me, how often did you see him or pay attention to him? Because I gotta say...from what Beverly told me, you barely saw them.  You didn’t even see Wesley after he was born and even I held your son when he was only a week old.  And I was farther away than you were since Johnny brought the ship here just for you!” Jack snorted. “More like so he could get it on with my wife.”

“JACK!  You know that’s not true.  Jean-Luc always made sure you had your time to go and spend it with your wife and son before he ever knocked on her door.  It’s not his fault you chose to screw someone else instead of seeing your family.” 

“But he’s my son.”

“Biologically...but frankly, he sees Jean-Luc as his father.” Jack scowled once more. Had he really lost his son to his best friend?  “I think I had better go. Abigail is waiting for me in Beverly’s office.”

“Abigail?  I want to see my daughter!”

“Hmm, so she’s your daughter now? Awfully convenient.  She knows you want to see her, but she is still deciding if she should. Frankly, I don’t think you deserve to see her.”

“You have no right to deny me my family.”

“I’m not denying you anything.  Abigail, just like Wesley, will make her own decision.”

“So tell me, Walker, are you her boyfriend, or her father?”  Walker clenched his fist.  “Damn sight better than you. At least I didn’t cheat on my wife to sleep with my subordinate.” 

“Yeah, well, she cheated on me.”  Walker’s fist slammed down on the bed next to Jack. “For the last time, Jackie boy.  Beverly and Johnny were not having an affair.  Much as I think Johnny would have loved to have swept Beverly off her feet all those years ago...he didn’t. “

“She slept with him on Pacifica.”

“What? Where did you get that idea in your head from?  And where the hell were you anyway? Screwing someone else?   Look, think whatever you want, but I assure you, Jean-Luc always kept his feelings in check for _your_ sake. But once Beverly learned the truth about you, all bets were off.  I’m leaving.  Bye, Jack.”  Walker turned on his heel and stormed out of the room. _No wonder Johnny went for a run after he spoke with Jack. The man is infuriating!_

Jack was alone.  He didn’t want to be alone, but he didn’t think there was any chance of fixing anything. Maybe Suzanne would want to get back together with him...he would have to ask her.  Of course, there was this mess he had gotten into with the Lieutenant, but if he could keep on pretending he didn’t know her, maybe she would just go away....the door opened once again. “Come back to kick me while I’m down, Wally?”

“Er....no. Jack, it’s me.”  Jack turned and looked.  It was Annisyn.  He schooled his face into a puzzled look. “Nurse?”

“I’m not a nurse!  I’m Annisyn.”

“Annie?”  Annisyn stomped her foot. “No. Annisyn.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know who you are.” Tears trailed down Annisyn’s face.  “I don’t understand, Jack. We’re having a baby together.  A girl.  You said....”  she hiccupped.  “You said you would divorce Beverly and we would get married.  You said you would get the Captain to marry us.  You said...” she sobbed.  Jack almost felt bad for her.  Almost.  But if she thought he was going to saddle himself with a 22-yr-old wife and a baby, she had another thing coming. 

“I think you should leave.”

“But....Jack...I love you!”  Jack inwardly shuddered.  “I’m sorry, Annie, I don’t remember who you are. If I remember who you are, I’ll have someone contact you.”  Annisyn slipped a small photograph into his hand before she backed out of the door.  Jack looked at his hand.  She had given him a picture from her latest scan.  He glanced at it.  Another baby.  Another child to bear the Crusher name.  He didn’t actually like children.  He just kept accidentally getting women pregnant.  Maybe his sperm was extra potent.  He grinned to himself.  _I must have super sperm!_  

Suzanne had been his childhood sweetheart. He had gone off to the Academy and hadn’t thought about Suzanne at all until he saw her again the summer between his first and second year.  They started sleeping together and before he knew it, she was telling him she was pregnant and her father was insisting they get married!  Fortunately, he managed to divorce her.   He had met another woman on his first tour aboard the _Stargazer_ , but he didn’t know if he had gotten her pregnant or not . She left the ship and he never heard from her again. 

And then he had met Beverly.  If truth be told, he only dated her for so long because he could see how much Johnny liked her and it had been fun to torture him.  When she told him she was pregnant, he decided he needed to marry her and get her off the _Stargazer_.  He had almost filed for divorce when she was seven months pregnant, but for some reason he hadn’t sent off the papers.  Probably because he knew Johnny would have swooped in. 

Annisyn was only the latest in a string of women Jack had slept with on the _Stargazer_.  It was just unfortunate that her birth control implant had malfunctioned.  He had no intention on marrying her now.  He told her he would, and he would have -  It would have given him the excuse he had needed to divorce Beverly, and then he could have divorced Annisyn. 

But now?  He wasn’t sure how he was going to get rid of the young woman.  Did he want to get rid of her or should he miraculously regain his memory and know who she was? He had some thinking to do.  Jack yawned.  He had another surgery scheduled for this afternoon.  HE wondered if he could convince the doctor to transfer him to Medical on Earth so he could hitch a ride back with the _Stargazer_. No doubt it would be returning for repairs to the sawn off nacelle. 

At least he hadn’t died. He was sad that Pug had apparently felt the brunt of the explosion, but he was somewhat relieved he had survived.  He knew that once his organs started repairing themselves he would make a full recovery.  He was Jack Crusher.  Of course he would recover.

###

In Beverly’s office, Wesley was still crying.  “I don’t like him. Papa,  I don’t want to see him ever again. I don’t want him to be my Daddy. Will you be Abby’s daddy so she can still be my sister?”  Jean-Luc chuckled. You couldn’t fault Wesley’s logic.  “Wes, I’m sure Abby will still be your sister.” 

“Of course I will, Wesley.  You’re stuck with me!”  Wesley cracked a small smile.  “There, that’s better.  Now then, Wes. I think we still have a few more places on this station to tour and learn about.  Should we go?”  Wesley held up his bear to Jean-Luc and  Jean-Luc sighed. 

“I’ll take the bear back to our quarters for you.” 

“Thank you, Papa. See you later. Bye Mommy.”

Beverly turned to look at Jean-Luc.  “I’m changing Wesley’s birth certificate.  I don’t care if he’s not yours biologically. You are Wesley’s father.”

“Can you do that?” 

“I took Jack off it and changed Wesley’s name to Howard.”  Jean-Luc circled Beverly’s waist with his arms to stop her from pacing.  Walker grinned at his friends.

“Why don’t I just adopt him in that case?  If Jack isn’t on his birth certificate, we don’t need Jack’s permission.” 

“How do we do this?”

“I think I might need to contact my lawyer. Can I use your console? I’ll send them a message and hopefully we can have it all figured out soon.”  Beverly kissed Jean-Luc. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Bev.”  Walker rolled his eyes at his friends. “Ugh, and Abigail and I are going to accompany you on your honeymoon?”Jean-Luc chuckled against Beverly’s lips. 

“Mm, get used to it.”  Jean-Luc reluctantly broke off his kiss. “But, speaking of honeymoons...I had better go try and square everything away with Command.  Walker, you still my First Officer?”

“You know it.”

“Right. Expect your official orders later today.  Bev?”

“Hmm, let me think about it.....”  She teased.  “Oh, that reminds me, I haven’t changed my name with Starfleet yet.  I should probably do that....”

“Well, only if you want to.”

“Oh, I want to be called Doctor Picard.”  She leaned up and kissed him again.  “Hmm. So an afternoon of working in our offices for both of us then?”

“Appears so.  Walker, I need you to check the crew manifest while I’m contacting Command and handle any crew transfers for me...and I need to find my office.”


	19. Chapter 19

Suzanne ran into a crying young woman on her way towards Sickbay to meet Beverly.  The woman was pregnant, at least seven or eight months by the size of her belly.  As Suzanne comforted the young woman, she all of a sudden realised who she was. 

“Annisyn?”

The girl sniffed. “Yeah. How do you know who I am?”

“I’m Suzanne....Abigail’s mother...Jack Crusher’s ex-wife.” Annisyn’s eyes went wide. “You don’t want to help me.”

“I do.  Annisyn, I was around your age when I was pregnant with Abigail. How old are you?”

“Twen-twenty-two.”

“Ah, I was a bit younger than you.  It was hard, being young and pregnant.  When are you due?”

“Six weeks. But I haven’t had a check-up this past week because I didn’t want to see Doctor How...Picard. She doesn’t like me very much.”  Suzanne patted Annisyn’s hand and led her to a corner that had a few soft furnishings, a low table, and a replicator tucked into a corner.  She ordered up two cups of tea and lowered herself into one of the chairs.  “Annisyn, I need to ask you something and it won’t change me helping you, but it might change Doctor Picard’s feelings towards you.  But before I ask you, I need you to know that if you had gone to see Doctor Picard, she would have treated you.  She is a doctor first.”  Annisyn nodded. “Crying and getting upset can’t be good for the baby this close to your due date.  She knows when her mother is stressed.” 

Annisyn wiped her nose on her sleeve and Suzanne produced a handkerchief from a pocket and passed it to her.  “Thanks.  I know, but Jack says he doesn’t know who I am....we were together for two years, how can he forget me?”

“Annisyn, please answer me truthfully.  When you started dating Jack Crusher, did you know he was married?”

“No.  We met when I was almost twenty....I’m a bit of a prodigy and was accepted to the Academy when I was fifteen and graduated when I was nineteen.  The _Stargazer_  was my first assignment and Jack was in charge of our training.”  Suzanne sipped at her tea. “Go on, please.”

“Jack asked me to have dinner with him in his quarters. Naturally, I was flattered that the second officer was inviting me to have dinner with him...he didn’t wear a ring and there weren’t any photos of a family in his quarters – I looked.  Even Captain Picard had a photo of a woman and a child in his Ready Room.” Suzanne smiled at this.  Jean-Luc must have had a picture of Beverly and Wesley. She made a mental note to tease him about it, or better still, tell Walker. 

“When did you find out he was married and had a son?”

“Not until I found out I was pregnant.  We had been dating for two years...it was all secretive because he said he didn’t want the Captain to know he was dating someone so young....Jack helped me get my promotion to Lieutenant.  When I told him I was pregnant, I asked him if we could get married and he said that he would have to divorce his wife first.”

“Annisyn, why are you still with him?  He used you.”

“I...I know...but...I’m in love with him. And he really made me believe he was going to divorce his wife...he showed me the divorce papers and everything.  Then he had his accident.  I guess I should have told the Captain, but I was afraid to. Doctor Greyhorse knew and would let me sneak in to see Jack when no one else was around.”  Annisyn began to cry again.  “And now he...he doesn’t know who I am...he can’t remember my baby....I don’t know what I’m going to do!” 

Suzanne gathered the girl into her arms and let her cry.  _Oh, Jackie.  You really messed up this poor young woman._   Suzanne lifted Annisyn’s chin. “Annisyn, I’m going to contact Doctor Picard, alright?  Will you wait here?”

“But...but...” 

“I know, just...give me a few minutes.”  Annisyn nodded and Suzanne went over to the communications console in the corner. She hoped she knew how to use it.  She pressed a button. “Computer: Can you connect me to Doctor Picard?”

“Affirmative.”  The station logo was replaced with Beverly’s office and her face filled the screen.  _“Picard here.”_

“Bev, I need to tell you something....”

_“Are you alright?”_

“Yes, I’m fine.  I was headed to your office when I ran into Annisyn...”

_“Oh.”_

“Beverly, my dear...Jack is claiming to have no memory of her and it’s putting her under stress. I shudder to think what it’s doing to the poor baby inside.”

_“Have her come to Sickbay.  I can have one of the nurses look her over.”_

“Beverly.”

_“Suzanne...no. I can’t see her.”_

“Bev, you need to know something that might change how you feel about her. She didn’t know Jack was married when they started their affair.  She only found out when she told him she was pregnant.”

_“But she still wanted him to leave me for her.”_

“True, but Beverly....let me ask you something. When you found out you were pregnant with Wesley, what was the first thing you wanted to do?”

_“I wanted Jack to marry me so we could be a family.”_

“And if Jack had told you he was married...say if he and I had still been married?”

_“I....I would have been devastated to find out, but if Jack had told me he would leave his wife for me I would have been overjoyed...alright, I see where you’re coming from.  Bring Annisyn to my office.  I’ll check on the baby for her and talk to her.  But I’m making no promises.”_

“Understood, Bev.  We’ll be there in a few minutes. How do I end this call?”

 _“Picard out.”_ The screen went blank.  “Oh, I guess that’s how you do it.”  Suzanne walked back over to Annisyn.  “I’ve spoken with Doctor Picard.  She’s willing to take a look at the baby for you and listen to you....but I can’t promise she’ll accept what you have to say.”

“Ok...Suzanne?  Thank you.”

“Think nothing of it. Jack has scorned us all, and we need to stick together.”

###

Doctor Quaice was looking over Jack Crusher’s latest brain scans and scratching his head.  The scans showed no lasting damage, so either there was something wrong with the scanner or Jack Crusher was pretending not to remember certain things.  None of it added up.  Trauma patients who experienced memory loss after an accident usually didn’t remember the accident, and yet Jack had been able to give Captain Picard full details of the event....but couldn’t remember the girl he got pregnant.  If he was doing this to try to protect Beverly, it was noble of him, but it wouldn’t change the way Beverly felt about him.  Besides which, Beverly was finally happy.  Dalen always knew when the _Stargazer_ was docked with the station because Beverly’s mood always improved.  Dalen had foolishly assumed it was because she was seeing her husband, but he now suspected it had everything to do with Captain Picard.  He was sad to lose his assistant and surrogate daughter, but he was over the moon for her.  Dalen sighed and ordered new brain scans for Jack Crusher to be performed with a different machine and ordered for a diagnosis to be done on the first one.  Eventually, he would get to the bottom of things.

###

Beverly looked up when Suzanne ushered Annisyn into her office.  Beverly wasn’t sure about talking with Annisyn, but if she honestly hadn’t known Jack was married before they got together, she could hardly blame the girl, could she? 

“Lieutenant Lobo.”

“Doctor Picard.  I...”  Annisyn trailed off and looked at her feet.  She had one hand resting on her rounded belly and the other placed on her back.

“Back pain?”  Annisyn nodded.  Beverly went to the replicator in her office and replicated a U-shaped pillow.  She helped Annisyn lower herself into a chair and placed the pillow behind her back.  “That should help.  Take this pillow with you back to your quarters and if you are sitting at a desk...are you still performing your regular duties?”

“Captain Picard assigned me to engineering on base for now.  But I work in Stellar Cartography on the _Stargazer_.”  Beverly smiled. “Yes, I’m sure there isn’t much star mapping to do on a base.  Looking back, I suppose it makes sense that Jack didn’t want to base himself here with me....but anyway.  Annisyn, can I call you Annisyn?”  Annisyn nodded. “I understand from what you were saying to Suzanne you were in the dark about Jack and myself?”

“Yes, Doctor.”  Beverly smiled. “Please, you can call me Beverly.” 

“Thank you, Beverly.  I’m sorry, I honestly didn’t know . I thought you were Captain Picard’s wife.”  Beverly raised her eyebrows. “I am now, but why did you think that?”

“Captain Picard has a picture of you and your son in his Ready Room, I assumed it was a picture of his family.”  Beverly grinned and swapped a look with Suzanne. “Oh Bev, I intend on teasing the hell out of Johnny for that, don’t you worry.”  Annisyn had a puzzled look on her face and looked over at Suzanne.

“Who’s Johnny?”  Suzanne covered her mouth. “Ooops.  I meant to say, Captain Picard.  Johnny is his old nickname from when he was a cadet...Commanders Crusher, Keel, and I still call him Johnny. Bev, I’ve never heard you use it though?”

Beverly shook her head . “Well, only occasionally.  But originally I wanted Wesley to call him Jean-Luc, so I always made sure I did, too. But back to the subject at hand...Annisyn, I think I may have misjudged you, and for that I am very sorry.  It sounds like...well,  Jack has a lot to answer to, doesn’t he?”

Annisyn slowly nodded and a tear slipped down her face. “How did you two do it?”

“Do what?”

“Be single parents?  I mean, I know you were married to Jack, but with him away on the _Stargazer,_ weren’t you basically a single parent? “

“It was hard, but you manage.  You create your own network wherever you go. For example, Doctor Quaice’s wife treats Wesley like a grandchild, and Doctor T’Sal and I take turns looking after each other’s children if we are on shift. But, I managed to finish my medical degree and even pass my Lieutenant Commander exam, so I’ve obviously done something good.  And I had Jean-Luc and Commander Keel.”

Annisyn looked at her hands. “I don’t...I don’t have anyone.  My parents died when I was ten and I was pushed around Federation orphanages until I passed my exam for the Academy.” 

“Oh...” Beverly’s eyes filled with compassion for the young woman.  “My parents died when I was small, too.  I was raised by my Nana.  Are you staying on the _Stargazer_?”

“If you’ll let me?”

“It’s not up to me, Annisyn.  Captain Picard has put Commander Keel in charge of reassignments.  But if you want to stay on the _Stargazer_ , I’m willing to be your friend....Suzanne too.”

“I hurt Abigail.  I don’t think she’ll be my friend.” Suzanne patted her shoulder.  “Hmm. Well, I know my daughter,and if you apologize to her, it will go a long way.” 

“I’ll try.” 

“Annisyn, how long had you been seeing Jack?  You told me he was your boyfriend when I first met you, so I assume it wasn’t a one time fling?”  Annisyn shook her head. “No, we had been dating for about two years...I met Jack when I came on board.”

“Oh, I never asked. Is that how you and Abigail met?”

“Yes, Abby and I were in the same intake class,” Annisyn looked up at Beverly. “I don’t understand why Jack doesn’t remember me. Can you explain it?”

“When someone has a traumatic experience, they often tend to block out the event and can lose a bit of their short term memory in the...process....” Beverly trailed off.  “Uhm...I need to go speak with Doctor Quaice.  Suzanne, will you come with me?  Annisyn, I’ll send one of my nurses in to get you settled in an examination room and we’ll take a look at that baby, alright?”  Annisyn nodded, but she was confused at Beverly’s sudden abruptness. “I’m sorry, Annisyn.  I just realised something very important. I will be with you as soon as I can.”  Suzanne gave Annisyn a pat on the shoulder before following Beverly out of the room.

“Beverly, what’s wrong?” Beverly spun around to meet Suzanne’s eyes. “Suzanne, it doesn’t make sense.  Jack doesn’t remember _anything_ about Annisyn, but he remembered Abigail?  He knew his daughter had been serving on the _Stargazer_ with him and Abigail and Annisyn came onboard at the same time....Jack knew details about his accident.  He gave Jean-Luc a detailed report....something isn’t adding up.  I need to tell Dalen.  Would you...would you go back into my office and contact Jean-Luc and Walker?  I’ll talk to Dalen, and then examine Annisyn.  Tell Jean-Luc...tell him we need to support Annisyn. Tell him I said it.” Suzanne nodded. 

Beverly stormed into Dalen’s office.  His office was empty, but through the window, Beverly could see Dalen performing another scan on Jack.  Beverly angrily opened the door to Jack’s room.  “Dalen, stop the scan.”

“Beverly?”

“Stop wasting your time on this....this....son of a Romulan!”  Beverly reached for the monitors attached to Jack’s forehead and ripped them off. 

“ _Beverly!_ ” 

“I’m sorry, Dalen.  But Jack’s lying.  He remembers.  He remembers _everything._ ”

“The brain scans showed no damage, but I assumed it was a malfunction with the machine I used....”

“It wasn’t,”  Beverly glared at Jack, who had been surprisingly quiet. “Go on, Jack. Tell the good doctor you’re lying.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“Oh, I think you do.” Jack shook his head.  “Jack.  When did you first see your adult daughter?”

“It was about two years ago, when she came onboard.  Johnny put me in charge of running their intake class and I couldn’t help but notice how much she looked like my ex, and then when I saw her name, I knew who she was.”

“Mm-hmm. And this was the same time you met Annisyn?”

“Yes.”  Jack’s eyes went wide. “Er...I mean...I guess so?  Did she come onboard the same time as Abigail?”

“Jack. You know _damn well_ when Annisyn arrived.  You met her at the same intake class.  You thought she was cute.  You asked her to have dinner with you.  You started an affair with her and you even helped her to gain her promotion ahead of the other Ensigns she came onboard with.  When she told you she was pregnant – a few months before I told you I wanted another child, I might add – you told her you would leave me for her.  You even showed her a PADD with divorce papers filled out and ready to send.  NO. MORE. LIES!”

Beverly spun around to stalk out of the room, but strong arms caught her and pulled her close.  She felt Jean-Luc place a kiss on top of her head as he held her.  Jean-Luc glared over at Jack on the biobed.  “Jack, is this true? Have you been fooling us?  For what?  To get rid of Annisyn? Did you really think she would just disappear with your child and you would be free to go screw someone else?”

Jack remained silent on the biobed.  Jean-Luc turned to Dalen. “Doctor, I won’t pretend to understand the human brain, however, might I suggest we bring in a psychologist?  It’s clear to me there is some kind of underlying probem with Jack.  As his current commanding officer, I can make the order, but I need a doctor to back me up.” 

“Yes...I think that might be advisable. Jack still has several surgeries to repair the damage, however, it’s nothing that couldn’t be handled by a team at Starfleet Medical on Earth.  I can discharge him to your CMO’s care...”  Beverly gasped.  “Jean-Luc, you’re not thinking of bringing that...scum onto the _Stargazer_ , are you?”

“I’m sorry, my love.  Command won’t let me dismiss him unless it’s by relocating him to a medical facility.  But he will be confined to his quarters for the duration of the trip back to Earth....the long, slow trip.  I estimate it will take eight weeks at our maximum warp.”

“Eight weeks?  You’re going to confine me to my quarters for eight weeks?”

“Would you rather the brig?”

“Under what grounds could you possibly put me in the brig?”

“Hmm.  Lying to your superior officer, for one.”

“Fine. I’ll stay in my quarters.” Jean-Luc turned to Doctor Quaice. “Doctor, we will begin to load the _Stargazer_ in two days once it returns to the base, and expect to ship out in four.  Can you make sure Jack is ready?”

“Of course, Captain.  And don’t forget about dinner.”

“No, of course not.” Jean-Luc guided Beverly out of the room and out into Dalen’s office.  “So what’s this Suzanne was telling me about Annisyn?  We...like her now?”  Beverly grinned at her husband.

“Yes. We do.  Annisyn...she was nothing but a pawn in Jack’s twisted...whatever.  She didn’t know Jack was married when they got together and thought they were being discrete because of their age and rank gap. Jack apparently doesn’t keep any photographs of Wes or I on display in his quarters....” she trailed off and ran a hand down Jean-Luc’s chest, “...but it seems that a certain starship captain had one on display.” 

“I...ah...well, you were one of my best friends and Wesley was my ‘nephew’.....”

“Did you keep a picture of Walker in your Ready Room too?”

“No. Why would I?”

“Well, if you were displaying pictures of your best friends....”  Jean-Luc caught Beverly’s hand before it could make another pass down his chest and brought it to his lips. “Got me there.”  Beverly leaned in and kissed him.  “Why did you come?”

“When Suzanne told me what you suspected, I had to make sure you were alright.” 

“You know, Mister Picard, Misses Picard can take care of herself.”  Jean-Luc pulled Beverly into a loose embrace.  “I know she can.  But Mister Picard likes taking care of his wife.”  He kissed her nose.  Something hard hit the window between Dalen’s office and Jack’s room.  “Hmm, do you think we’re upsetting Jack?” Beverly kissed Jean-Luc and ran her tongue inside his lip. “Don’t care.  But maybe we shouldn’t kiss in Dalen’s office.  The man _is_ practically my father.”

“You have a point.  And you have a young pregnant woman to exam.  I’ll be in your office.  I think we should tell Annisyn about Jack’s lying, don’t you?” Beverly nodded. “But let me check on the baby first.  I don’t want any harm to come to the baby.  After all, it’s Wesley’s little sister.”

Beverly made her way to Annisyn who was waiting on a biobed with Suzanne next to her. “I’m sorry I kept you. Now then, let’s hook up this monitor and check on the little lady, shall we?” Beverly glanced at Annisyn’s uniform. She was wearing a many sizes too big for her jumpsuit. “Annisyn, did you know Starfleet offers maternity uniforms?  They’re a two-piece, more of a tunic top with leggings under.  You’d feel a lot more comfortable. Do you want me to replicate you one and give you the commands to enter into your replicator in your quarters?”

“Oh, yes please.  I didn’t know.  I don’t have anyone to talk to and Jack just told me to replicate a larger uniform....”  Beverly rolled her eyes. “Well, Jack wasn’t around much once I started showing, so he probably wouldn’t know.  I can’t believe Carter Greyhorse never told you.  He ought to know.”  Beverly began to think about prenatal care in Starfleet and wondered if Carter wasn’t the only unmarried male doctor who didn’t know what to explain to the mother beyond the physical aspects of being pregnant.  She decided she would contact someone at Starfleet Medical to recommend some kind of training...or at least to make the information available. She snapped out of her thoughts when she brought the uniform back over to Annisyn. “We’ll leave you to change, and then all we have to do is lift up your tunic to use the scanner.”

Through the curtain Beverly heard Annisyn exclaim “Wow, this is so much better!”

“Can I come back in?”

“Yes.” Annisyn was smiling on the biobed. “Wow, I wish I had known months ago about this uniform. This is a lot more comfortable.”

“There are also special uniforms for if you decide to breastfeed that are designed for easier access. I’ll talk you through everything back in my quarters if you’d like when we’re on the _Stargazer_.”

“In the Captain’s quarters?”

“Er..well, considering I’m the Captain’s wife.  Oh, I hadn’t really thought about that!” Beverly let out a very un-Beverly giggle.  “I’m the Cpatain’s wife.” 

“Uh...Bev?  Annisyn kind of has her shirt up and is waiting...” Suzanne gently reminded her. “Oh, right. Sorry, Annisyn.  It just struck me suddenly.”

Annisyn laughed. “It’s alright.  I feel weird talking to the Captain’s wife.”

“Well, you should know that I keep all my conversations with my patients confidential unless it’s related to their ability to perform their duties.  As for us personally....I hope you’ll come to view all of us as your friends or even extended family.”  Tears sprung to Annisyn’s eyes. “After I was so awful to you?  How can you be so nice to me?”

Beverly patted Annisyn’s hand. “We’ll talk after we check on the baby.”  Beverly placed two discs on either side of Annisyn’s abdomen and activated them.  The screen above flickered into life and displayed the small baby. “You’re due in about six weeks.  We should start talking about your birthing plan.”

“Birthing plan?”  Annisyn looked at Beverly.  “What’s that?” Beverly shook her head and grumbled “I’m really going to have to have a conversation with Carter. I don’t care if he’s my superior....” 

“A birthing plan is where you sit down with your doctor and you decide how you want to give birth. Your doctor will discuss with you the pros and cons of each option and give you the input you need to decide how you want to give birth...we can set up an appointment and talk. I’m sure you’d like me to become your doctor instead of Greyhorse?” 

Annisyn nodded. “You’ve said more to me in five minutes than Doctor Greyhorse did in five months!”   Annisyn gazed at the monitor above and a tear snuck down her cheek. “Is that her?  That’s my baby?”

“Yep.  She’s beautiful.  Any ideas on names?”

“Well...I had planned on talking with Jack first, but I guess I’m on my own.  I have a short list of names I liked.  Beverly...can I do this on my own?” 

“You can. You’re strong.  And you’ll have us.  Let us be your family for you.  After all, you’re having my son’s little sister.”

“Thank you, Beverly..I don’t know how to repay you.”

“Nothing to do.  Now, let’s go into my office. Jean-Luc wanted to speak with you.”


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My original plans were to end this at 20 chapters, as that seemed like a nice number...but thanks to my devoted readers (especially my anon reviewers!) who kept asking for more...this isn’t the end of this story yet! There’s at least one more to go, maybe more.
> 
> I also would like an opinion please - I need a title for this set of stories so I can make it a series and group them all together. Suggestions?

Beverly surveyed her former quarters.  Crates were labelled – some items were going into storage, the rest into her and Jean-Luc’s quarters aboard the _Stargazer_.  “Are you sure there’s enough room for all of this?  Your quarters were pretty small...”

“Oh, Um...the quarters next to mine were empty, so I had ours enlarged.”  Beverly grinned. “You did?”  She stood up to place a kiss on his cheek.  “I wanted you to feel like they were your quarters too. Not just mine that you happened to be living in.”

“Thank you.  What do you need to do before we ship out?”

“I need to speak with Gilaad before he officially is relieved as my First Officer.  He’s a good man, and I’m sad to see him go, but he needed to move ahead with his career.”

“And Walker’s agreed to come back as your First Officer, so it can’t all be bad.”

“Indeed.  We’ll need to appoint a new second officer though.  I would appoint Abigail or Annisyn, but I think that might smack of nepotism just a little bit.”  Beverly raised her eyebrows. “But not me, eh? I’m not good enough to be your second officer?” Jean-Luc’s arms circled her waist and he drew her in closer. He placed a kiss under her ear. “Oh, no, my love.  You’ll be next in line for CMO.”  Beverly’s eyes brightened “Really?” 

“You deserve it.  You’re an excellent doctor.  I can, uh, promote you to Commander...”

“Actually, Jean-Luc, I would prefer to earn my rank same way I earned my Lieutenant Commander pips, by taking and passing the Command exam.”  It was Jean-Luc’s turn to raise his eyebrows. “I have no doubt you will pass with flying colours. When did you intend on taking it?”

“Hmm. Well, I’d like to have another baby first, so maybe in a year or two?”  Jean-Luc grinned. “I’d like for us to have another baby, too. Shall we start trying now?”  He wiggled his eyebrows at her and Beverly swatted him. “Don’t be silly.  You have to go see Gillad and I have to finish packing.  Ugh.  Who knew I could accumulate so much stuff in six years?  Are you sure I can send some of this to the barn in La Barre?” 

“Absolutely.  Just leave them to one side and we’ll put them in the cargo hold in the _Stargazer_ , then once we get to McKinley I can arrange for them to be beamed directly to my barn.  There’s plenty of space in it.  Maman had it built for me before I left for the Academy...Papa nearly kicked me out of the house when I told him I was attending and Maman wanted me to have a place to store my belongings. “ 

“Thanks.  I can’t decide if I should store Wesley’s old baby things or not.  What if I get pregnant soon?” 

“Then we can have the boxes sent back.”  Jean-Luc kissed her nose and sighed regretfully. “I had better go see Gilaad.”

“Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

###

Annisyn was enjoying an outing at the station’s spa one more time before they left. She had invited along Abigail, and hoped to repair their friendship.  Her baby, which would actually be Abigail’s younger sister, was due in a little over a month.  Annisyn gently rubbed her belly.  “It’s all working out, baby.  Your father doesn’t seem to care about us or want us, but we’ve found an extended family that does care.  You’ll have an older brother and an even older sister and lot of aunts and uncles.  We’ll make sure you grow up knowing you are loved, even if your father doesn’t want you around.”  Abigail smiled as she approached her...well, not entirely step-mother since she never married Jack.  She briefly wondered why there was no word for mother-of-my-half-sister  in Standard and wondered what other cultures that had a more dynamic family group called each other.  She vowed to look it up at some point. 

“Talking to my little sister?”  Annisyn grinned. “I’ve been talking to her since I found out I was pregnant, and especially since finding out it was a girl.”  Abigail held out her hand. “Can I?”  Annisyn nodded and took Abigail’s hand in hers and rested it on her stomach.  Abigail  softly cooed, “Hi, baby,  I’m your sister.  Which I know is weird because I’m older than your mother, but you’ll get used to it.  Once you’re old enough to talk,  I’ll teach you to call the Captain ‘gramps’”  Annisyn let out an unladylike snort.  “Gramps? Are you kidding me?” Abigail grinned back. “Come on, it will be hilarious.”  The two shared a giggle and another woman looked on at them and came over.

“Oh, you two look so adorable. When are you due?”  Abigail and Annisyn exchanged a look and started giggling again.  Abigail decided to play along and clasped Annisyn’s hand. “We’re due in about five weeks, aren’t we?”  Annisyn tried to contain her giggles and nodded.  “Well, you two look simply adorable together and I’m sure you’ll make wonderful parents.” The woman turned and walked away and Abigail collapsed onto the chaise lounge next to Annisyn and they both fell into more laughter. 

“Oh, wouldn’t that be a twisted family tree!” 

“Frankly, I think it’s pretty twisted already,”  Annisyn looked over at Abigail’s smiling face. “Abby?  I’m sorry I was so nasty to you....I think I was so caught up in wanting Jack to be a part of the baby’s life I just...snapped.”

“You’re forgiven.  I’m guessing those pregnancy hormones didn’t help?” Annisyn nodded.  “And I didn’t know what was happening to my body...not really. Doctor Greyhorse really doesn’t know what he’s doing when it comes to examining pregnant women.”

“Ugh. He’s not that much better when you’re not pregnant.  Do you know I had to ask Beverly to check and make sure my implant was up to date before I started sleeping with Walker?  I just couldn’t trust Doctor Greyhorse.”

“We used to be so close...can we be close again?”  Abigail nodded. “Yes, I think so.  We’re family now....in some strange way.  I’m not sure if you’re my sister or my mother, though.”  Annisyn laughed.  “Maybe I should call the Captain Papa and see what happens.”

“Oh! You should!  But only if I’m there to see the look on his face!  I’m telling you, I’m going to teach that kid of yours to call him Gramps.” 

“Hmm, but then Beverly would be Gran, and I’m not sure she’s quite ready for that..and isn’t the Captain the same age as Commander Keel?” Abigail nodded. “Yep.  That’s why our kids are going to call him Gramps instead of Dad.”

“You wouldn’t!”

“Oh, I would....but that’s still a few years away.  I don’t think I’m quite ready for a kid yet.  I have a hard enough time with Wes, and he’s only my brother!” Annisyn rolled her eyes at her friend. “Well, it’s not like I really planned this, was it?  But....I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Now, what do you say we go in and pamper ourselves?”

“I say, lead on, sister-mother.”

###

Walker was trying to entertain Wesley while his parents and teacher were both busy. He finally settled on taking the boy back to the holocinema,  where at least he would be sitting still for a few hours.  _How does Jean-Luc make it look so easy?  Am I missing some kind of key element that would make me capable of looking after children?  Does this mean I’d be a bad father if Abby and I have children?_   He brushed the thoughts aside and concentrated on Wesley.  “Do you want any snacks?”

“Yeah! Can I have popcorn an kussberry laces an a fizzy ice?”  Walker frowned. “Popcorn I know, but you’re going to have to help me out on the other things.”  The man behind the counter took pity on Walker and pointed at a container of bright green gummy strands.  “Those are kussberry laces.  A fizzy ice is one of those cold drinks made with pieces of ice and then we pour syrup on them, but to make it fizzy we add carbonated flavoured water to it.”

“I see.  And just how hyper is this going to make the kid?”  The man’s voice dropped to a whisper. “If he’s not yours, very.  If he’s yours...don’t do it, man.” 

“In that case, we’ll take all of it.” Walker grinned.  Jean-Luc would probably kill him, but it would be worth it. 

###

Jean-Luc’s meeting with Gilaad had gone well.  All he really needed was a final report from the man so he could dismiss him as his First Officer, but over the years, he and Gilaad had developed a strong friendship. Gilaad Ben Zoma had moved up to Second Officer when Jean-Luc had become Captain all those years ago and he had first brought Walker on board as his First. When Walker left to take up a position with Intelligence, it had been natural to promote Gilaad into the First Officer position and Jack into  Second. He had wanted Gilaad’s opinion on who could fill Jack’s vacant slot. Technically, until they reached Earth, Jack was still the Second Officer, but once he was turned over to Medical, Jean-Luc would be without one.  Gilaad was recommending Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Wu.  Jean-Luc didn’t know much about her, but thought she might be worth giving her the position on a temporary basis for the eight-week trip back to Earth first. 

When Jean-Luc released Gilaad from his position, it was bittersweet.  Gilaad agreed to meet up with him and Walker for a drink before the _Stargazer_ left, and after he departed, Jean-Luc felt a little sad.  But on the other hand, he was back in charge of his ship and as he stepped back onto the bridge he couldn’t help but whisper “Hello, old girl.” 

He nodded to the crew stationed on the bridge and when the Lieutenant who was sitting watch made to stand up, Jean-Luc shook his head. “I’m not really here.   We leave in two days, if anyone wants last minute shore leave, please let myself or Commander Keel know.  There won’t be another chance until we reach McKinley in eight weeks, where I suspect the ship may be docked for some time for her repairs.”

He heard a chorus of “Aye, Sir”s as he made his way off the Bridge.  He quickly made his way to the newly enlarged quarters to give it an inspection and he was quite satisfied with the changes. In addition to the small room Wesley had previously used, a third bedroom, slightly larger, had been created for Wesley instead.  Jean-Luc and Beverly’s bedroom had been enlarged as well and their overall living space had been increased.  Tucked into a corner was an additional desk for Beverly’s use so they wouldn’t have to share a desk.  Satisfied, Jean-Luc debarked and headed for his and Beverly’s quarters on the base. 

When he entered their quarters, he had to laugh. There were still boxes strewn everywhere, but at least now they were in some kind of order.  Surprisingly, he couldn’t see Beverly anywhere. “Bev?  Are you here?” He got no response and headed towards the bedroom to change out of his uniform and paused.  Beverly had obviously been tired for she was curled up on the bed, napping.  Jean-Luc laid down next to her and gently nudged her awake.  “Oh, was I sleeping?”

“You were.  Do you want more sleep or?”  Beverly leaned over and kissed him. “Mmm, when will Walker be back with Wes?”

“At least another hour, maybe two.” Beverly grinned. “Well, I don’t want to nap, but I don’t want to leave this bed....”  She reached for Jean-Luc’s uniform and peeled open the jacket.  Jean-Luc kissed her back and returned the favour. “An excellent idea, Doctor Picard.” Clothing was soon discarded and Jean-Luc danced his fingers across his wife’s body.  “You are so beautiful.  I love you,  _mon Coeur.”_

“What does that mean?”

“It means heart.  Beverly...you are and always have been my heart.  _Mon amour_. My love.  _Je vous aime tellement._ I love you oh so very much.” 

“ _Mo ghaol.”_

“Hmm?” Jean-Luc kissed Beverly’s neck in just the place that made her swoon. “ _Mo ghaol_ is my love in Scottish. No one on Caldos really speaks it much, but I learned a few words from Nana. Mostly curses, though.” Jean-Luc chuckled against her neck. “I wondered what language that was when you dropped that plate on your foot.” 

“Mm, but less talking. More....”  Beverly ran her fingernails down Jean-Luc’s back and squeezed his bottom, causing him to nip her throat. “Bev. Er. Leeeeeee” Jean-Luc managed to gasp out.  Beverly dropped her voice to a sultry whisper, “Did you like that?”  Jean-Luc moaned in response as Beverly continued to scratch his back.

“It....hurts...but...feels...good...oh God,  Bev.”  Beverly giggled. “See, I’m still full of surprises.”  Jean-Luc grinned and rolled over so Beverly was now on top and shifted his hands to her hips. “So am I...”

###

They fell into a light doze only to be woken up by the door chime. “Hmm? Whazzat?”  Jean-Luc mumbled, curling back around Beverly. “Door chime,  Jean-Luc.  Someone is at the door.”

“Hmm? Oh....Umm....”  Jean-Luc untangled himself from the sheets and fell out of the bed to grasp around for his clothing.  He shouted to the door “Just a minute!” Softer, he said “Bev...Bev...do you see my underwear anywhere?” She shrugged. “Never mind.”  He shoved his legs into his trousers and pulled on his t-shirt.

“Come!” The door opened to reveal Annisyn and Abigail. “Oh...Abby...Annisyn....what can I, ah, do for you?”

Abigail let out a high pitched giggle and was swaying on her feet. “Bad timing,  Johnny?”  Annisyn’s jaw dropped.   “Johnny?”

“Family nickname for our dear Captain. You should call him Johnny too!”  Jean-Luc looked over at Annisyn. “Please don’t.”  Annisyn nodded.

“Is Bev hiding in the bedroom?”  Jean-Luc covered his reddening face and nodded.  Abigail raised her voice slightly. “Bev! It’s just me and Annisyn!”  Beverly emerged tying a dressing gown around her waist.

“Hello, ladies. Having a good day off?”  Abigail laughed. “We went to the spa...some lady thought Annisyn and I were a couple. Which would be kind of weird since Annisyn is having my little sister.” Abigail flopped onto the sofa.

“Abby...are you drunk?”  Jean-Luc took in the state of Abigail and shook his head.  As her superior officer, he should be reprimanding her...but he remembered what it was like to be in his twenties...come to think of it, his wife was still technically in her twenties.  Jean-Luc retreated back into the bedroom to finish getting dressed and left the three twenty-somethings alone. 

“Ummm....I dunno.  Annisyn, am I drunk?”

“Well, they offered us champagne at the spa...since I couldn’t drink it...Abby might have...umm....drank the whole bottle.” Abigail looked around. “Did I chase Johnny away?  Johnny....come back.... _O Captain, My  Captain!_ ”  Beverly erupted into loud laughter.  “I’ll have to remember that poem...” she trailed off and eyed her friend.  “Right. Let me get her sobered up.  I don’t think her boyfriend _or_ her mother would appreciate her being left drunk.  Annisyn, would you like anything?” 

“Peppermint tea? My stomach has been queasy all afternoon. Probably because I watched Abby drink a whole bottle of champagne.” 

“Coming right up...then I think I had better put some clothes on.”  Annisyn blushed. “Beverly...is the Captain mad at us?”

“No, of course not.  He’s just not used to having his subordinates other than Wally, Jack, Gilaad, and myself regard him as a friend...it’s going to take some getting used to...for all of us, I think.  And of course, we’ve had a head start over you.”  Beverly passed Annisyn her cup of tea, along with a cup of strong black coffee for Abigail.  “I’ll get a hypospray that should help, too.” Beverly retreated back into the bedroom and found her husband sitting on the edge of the bed fully dressed.

“Jean-Luc? Why are you still in here?”

“Beverly...they’re my lieutenants.  Alright, Abigail is dating my best friend and Annisyn is...was...dating the other, but...I can’t socialise with them!”

“Hmm. You never had a problem socialising with me, even when I was still just a cadet.”  Jean-Luc caught her hand in his. “You’re....you...that was different.” 

“Very eloquent.”

“You know what I mean.  I fell in love with you when we first met, and then you were dating one of my best friends and married to him, so of course I was going to be friends with you too...and I see what you’re saying.”  He hung his head in defeat.

“You know, I was younger than both of them when we first met.”

“Still a pretty as the first time I laid eyes on you.”  Jean-Luc pulled Beverly into his lap and kissed her untying her sash in the process.  “Oh no you don’t.  They are out there waiting for me to return dressed and with a hypospray for Abigail.  Go out there and talk to them.”

“If...If I have to.”

“You do.”  Jean-Luc got up and Beverly slapped his behind. “Hey!” 

“Hmm, thought you liked it?”

“I do, but...not _now_....” Beverly only grinned. 

Jean-Luc exited the bedroom and went to the replicator and replicated some tea before joining his lieutenants on the sofa.  “Um...Hello again.”

“Johnny!”  Abigail exclaimed. “Come sit next to me.”  Jean-Luc tentatively took a seat on the edge of the sofa next to Abigail and sipped his tea. Abigail rested her head against Jean-Luc’s shoulder. “You know, Johnny...Annisyn doesn’t have any parents. I think you should adopt her so she can be my sister.” Annisyn’s face coloured.

“Abigail, you realise I’m not actually your father, right?  I’m married to your ex-stepmother, but that doesn’t make me your father.”

“But I like you better than Jack!”  Jean-Luc tentatively patted Abigail’s shoulder. “I know you do.  But let’s get you sobered up. Drink your coffee, alright?”  Abigail nodded.  Jean-Luc turned towards Annisyn. “Annisyn, I want to apologize for you seeing me not fully clothed earlier.  I should have checked to see who was at the door first. But...” Jean-Luc let out a sigh, “if you’re going to be in our family, you might wind up seeing me in my pyjamas some day, so I suppose my uniform trousers and undershirt isn’t so bad compared to pyjamas.”

“He sleeps shirtless!” Abigail exclaimed.  “Do you know, Johnny, you have a nicer chest than Wally? Beverly is a very lucky woman.” Abigail leaned on Jean-Luc’s chest and he awkwardly put his arm around her to steady her. 

“Hmm, don’t I know it,”  Beverly appeared brandishing a hypospray. “Right. This will help clear up your head a bit.” She injected it into Abigail’s arm and Abigail seemed to perk up a bit.  “Drink your coffee and let it work through your system.” 

“Sir, you don’t need to apologize.  I shouldn’t have come to your quarters. Captain, I’m sorry.”

“Annisyn, when we’re casual like this, you may call me Jean-Luc.  Or at least drop the sir, please.  I like to relax in my quarters. “

“Ok, Sir. I mean, Captain.  Jean-Luc?”  Beverly chuckled.  “You’ll get used to it, Annisyn.”

Abigail slowly became sober.  “Bev...what was in that?”

“Oh, just a little mix I created back when Jack, Walker, Jean-Luc and I used to party....it was the only way I could sober up to get to class the next day!”  Abigail suddenly realised she was resting against Jean-Luc’s chest and jerked her head up.  “Jean-Luc...I’m...er....” Abigail went red and Jean-Luc merely squeezed her shoulder. “It’s fine, Abby.  You were a little drunk.  I’ve seen worse.  My own wife, for example...”  Beverly swatted him.

“Maybe I should stay away from Champagne in the future.”

“Are you sure it was _real_ Champagne?”  Beverly rolled her eyes. “Ugh, Abby, don’t get him started.”

“I don’t understand?”

“Oh, Abby,” Beverly sighed.  “Jean-Luc’s family are famous vinters.  Trust me, you don’t want to start asking about wine or Jean-Luc will start lecturing you.  In fact, I’ll tell you right now, any time you want wine, you ask Jean-Luc to pick it or he will critique it to death.”   Jean-Luc pulled Beverly down onto his lap. “I’m not that bad, am I?” Beverly merely gave him a look.  “Oh.  Sorry.”

Annisyn was laughing. “I never thought I would see the Captain being scolded by his wife.” 

“Uh...don’t tell the rest of the crew.”

“My lips are sealed Captain.”  Annisyn rose from her seat.  “I need to go. I still have some packing to do...I did some shopping for the baby while I was here and I have to pack it all up.”

“Oh!”  Beverly exclaimed and stood up. “Those boxes over there are full of Wesley’s baby things.  Do you still need anything? You’re welcome to go through the boxes.”

“Thanks,  that would be great.”  Jean-Luc stood up. “Right, this is my cue to be elsewhere.  I think I’ll see what Suzanne is up to.” 

“Mom’s probably sketching the view from one of the observation lounges so she can paint it later.” 

“Ah, perhaps I won’t disturb her.  I wonder how Walker is doing with Wes. Perhaps I ought to go relieve him...Abby, do you want to come with me or are you going to look through baby clothes too?”  Abigail looked over at the two women.  “Erm, if it’s alright with you two, I’m going to go with Jean-Luc.  No offense, I just don’t want to have a baby right now and I don’t think I could contribute much.”

“None taken, Ab.  Go off with my husband and find your boyfriend.” 

###

Jean-Luc asked the computer for Walker’s location and was surprised to learn he had taken Wesley to the children’s play area.  When Abigail and Jean-Luc rounded the corner, Abigail let out a snort of laughter.  Walker was collapsed on a bench, holding a large cone of candy floss in one hand, and Wesley’s stuffed bear in the other.  Jean-Luc eyed the candy floss as he approached Walker and looked around for his son.  “Please tell me that’s yours?” 

Walker slowly shook his head. “Sorry, Johnny. “  Jean-Luc hung his head.  “What else did you feed my son?”

“Um...some of those green berry liquorice things,  some kind of fizzy ice drink, popcorn, something that looked like a hot dog, Vulcan pizza,  some chips...oh, and some chocolate.”

 _“Walker!_ ”

“What?  Uncle’s prerogative to spoil the boy, right?”

“Shall I call you at 0200 when my son is throwing up from a stomach ache?”  Walker’s face went pale.  “He’ll get...sick? Oh God, your wife is going to kill me.”

“I don’t know. The last time Wesley ate a lot of junk food it gave him a stomach ache later because he didn’t know when to stop.”

“I’m sorry, Johnny. I...I didn’t think.”  Jean-Luc patted his old friend on the shoulder. “It’s okay, Walker.  I don’t think I would have thought about it either if I hadn’t been parenting Wesley with Beverly for the past few months.”

“Ah, then you admit it!”  Walker grinned. “Admit what?”

“You _did_ see Wesley as your son before you married Bev.”

“Of course I did.   Now, where is my son? If I know him as well as I think I do...he’s hanging off the climbing bars.” 

“Yep,” Walker pointed towards a group of children gathered around a climbing apparatus.  Wesley was, naturally, hanging upside down, heedless of the pending stomach ache he might have. 

“Wesley!” 

“Papa!”  Wesley executed some kind of roll over the bar he was hanging off and landed on his feet.  _We really should think about enrolling him in gymnastics if we ever are stationed back on Earth_.  Wesley ran over to his father and threw himself at him so Jean-Luc needed to scoop the boy up.

“Wesley, what’s this I hear about you eating lots of junk food?”

“I’m sorry, Papa...but Uncle Wally said it was okay.”

“Hmm.  Well, I’m afraid we’re going to have to throw out the candy floss.  I’m sure you’ve had enough for today.”  Jean-Luc looked over at Walker and Abigail. “I don’t have any other work to do today, so if you two want to take off, that’s alright with me. We’ll all be moving back onto the ship tomorrow, so this might be your last chance.”

“What about you and Beverly? Don’t you two want to go out on a date before we leave?”

“Well, I’m not going to deny that it would be nice to take my wife out for a nice meal, but if we decide to go out, we’ll call for a babysitter. Please, Abigail, enjoy your time off.”  Walker passed Wesley’s teddy bear to Jean-Luc. “Don’t have to tell me twice. Bye Wes, we’ll see you later.”

“Bye Uncle Wally! Bye Abby!” 

Jean-Luc put Wesley down. “Now then, Cadet.  I’ll race you to the swings and push you on them if you beat me. But if I win, you have to push me, deal?” Wesley grinned at his step-father and took off running.  Jean-Luc smiled and went into a light jog to catch up with the boy.  He wasn’t really going to run faster than his son, but he needed to at least make him think like it was a challenge.  He let Wesley beat him to the swings by less than a foot. Wesley was laughing “Haha! Papa, you  have to push me!”

After what seemed like hours of swinging, Wesley began to yawn . “Hmm. I’d ask if you wanted any dinner, but I suspect you’re still full from all the food you ate with your uncle.”

“Uh-huh.” 

“Well, let’s go home and see what your mother is up to.  And I think someone might need a bath tonight, don’t you?” Jean-Luc said, taking in Wesley’s chocolate rimmed mouth and overall scruffy appearance.  Wesley frowned. “Do I hafeta?”

“Yes.”

“Awww but I don’t wannnnnaaaaaaa”  Wesley stretched out the word as long as he could.  Jean-Luc looked around and saw that no one was paying the pair of them any attention whatsoever and he supposed parents were used to seeing children whinge to their parents.  He sighed. “Come on, Wes.  Let’s go home.”

At home, Beverly took one look at the state of her son and shook her head. “Walker?”

“I’m afraid he gave the boy quite a lot of junk food.”  Beverly sighed. “I’ll get the stomach ache remedy out. You run the bath.” 

“Deal.” 


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor Annisyn. I need to throw her a break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is a tad later than I would have liked. We've been rearranging the furniture....

Annisyn took a deep breath and adjusted her tunic before entering the security code Doctor Quaice had given her for Jack’s room.  The lights were dim, and she couldn’t tell if he was sleeping unless she walked closer.  She briefly thought about smothering him with a pillow, but then decided that probably wouldn’t be a good idea.  She inched towards the bed and Jack rolled over, fast asleep.  Annisyn took the time to study him and she reached out a hand and gave him a sharp slap acoss the face. 

Jack’s eyes flew open. “What the?!”

“Hello, Jack.”

“Uhm.....Annie, right?”   Annisyn gave him a cold look. “Don’t play games. I know you were lying and started remembering everything.”

“I....” Annisyn picked up his hand and placed it over her belly. “Feel that?”  He nodded. “That’s the only time you will EVER touch your daughter.  I hope you’re happy.  I would have accepted you back.  I would have married you.  We could have been a family. But I want you to know right now that I am completely happy without you.  My baby is due while we’re on the way back to Earth and you will not see her. You will not even know when she’s born.  How does that make you feel, Jack?”

“I...”

“No, don’t talk. I might have to hit you again. God, Jack. What the hell did you think you were playing at? Pretending not to know who I was?  Were you trying to break me? Because I have to tell you – you nearly did.  And you know who saved me?  Suzanne.  Yep. Your first wife is helping me. “

“What’s her name going to be?”

“Oh no, you’re not going to know that, either.”

“Her name will be Crusher, I’ll find her that way.”  Annisyn glared at Jack. “Will it?” 

“Lobo, then.”

“Hmm. Perhaps.  But then again, perhaps not.”  Annisyn turned on her heel. “Goodbye Jack.”

Annisyn walked out of the door into Dalen’s office and once she was safely out of view of the window she slid to the floor and wept.

###

Suzanne rang the chime outside Annisyn’s temporary quarters and was surprised when there was no answer as she was meeting Annisyn for dinner.  “Computer, can you tell me where Lieutenant Lobo is?”

“Lieutenant Lobo is in Sickbay.”

“Sickbay?  Is the baby ok?”

“Unknown.  Lieutenant Lobo is not a patient.”

“Oh. Um..Thanks?”  The computer, naturally, remained silent.  Suzanne made her way to sickbay, all the while wondering why Annisyn was there and what she was doing if she wasn’t a patient. Or maybe she had been for a check up?  But at this hour? 

Sickbay was empty when Suzanne entered, save for two occupied biobeds that did not contain Annisyn and the on-duty nurse.  Suzanne strained her ears and heard sobbing coming from Doctor Quaice’s office and hurried in and found Annisyn on the floor, sobbing.  Suzanne wrapped her arms around the younger woman. “Annisyn, what’s wrong?”

“Suz...I...came to see Jack.  I thought...I thought he might want to apologize.  But he...” Annisyn sniffed, “he....still played like he didn’t know who I was.”  Suzanne rubbed Annisyn’s back and made soothing sounds to try to calm her, but Annisyn continued to speak . “I mean, I believed the Captain when he said you and Beverly discovered he was lying about not remembering, but I had hoped he would have felt remorse? And then he pretended to care about the baby, like he wanted to be able to see her.” Annisyn looked up at Suzanne with steel in her eyes. “I’ll be damned if he ever does.  If I have to change our name, I will.”

“Isn’t that a little extreme?”

“No.  I don’t want him in her life.  Ever.”  Suzanne sighed. “One day, Annisyn...your daughter might come to you and ask who her father is...Abigail did with me just two weeks ago.”

“If she asks, I will give her his name.  But he doesn’t actually want us, so why should I tell him her name or let him see her when she’s born?”

“Well, it’s up to you. Now, why don’t we go drop in on Beverly and Jean-Luc?  I was planning on asking them if they’d like me to babysit Wesley tonight so they could have a night out.  Do you want to help me?” Annisyn nodded and accepted Suzanne’s help to rise. 

“Won’t he just be sleeping?”

“Probably.”

“I guess I can come along.” 

###

Jean-Luc and Beverly were overjoyed at the prospect of getting to have an evening out, but they were also concerned Wesley might wake up with a stomach ache and need them.  Suzanne assured the couple that she could handle it if Wesley was ill, and suggested taking along one of their comm badges so she could reach them just in case.  Beverly agreed, and dashed into the bedroom to get ready. Jean-Luc chuckled.  “Thank you, ladies.  We were going to have a quiet evening on the sofa with a bottle of wine, but I think a nice dinner out would be better.  If you’ll excuse me, I’d better see if I can get us a table.” 

Jean-Luc headed to the computer console in the corner and accessed the base’s restaurant directory.  He hated dancing, but he knew Beverly would want to dance, so he picked a restaurant that had a live band playing.  He pre-ordered a bottle of wine for the table before logging off the computer and glanced down at his uniform.  While he wouldn’t mind staying in it, he was sure Beverly would appreciate it if he changed, so he headed into the bedroom and smiled when he saw Beverly had gone into the bathroom to change.  He quickly changed into a pair of black trousers and a v-necked emerald coloured shirt.  He tapped on the bathroom door. “Bev, I’m done changing. I’ll wait for you in the living room.”  Beverly called out a muffled “OK”  as he left the room.

When Beverly emerged, she took his breath away.  She decided to wear a long purple gown with her hair pulled up.  The dress was simple, but elegant.  “You are beautiful.”  Jean-Luc placed a kiss on her cheek.  Beverly turned towards Suzanne and Annisyn. “You sure you want to give up your last night of freedom to babysit for us?”  Annisyn laughed. “Beverly, I would only stare at the walls of my quarters.” 

“I don’t want to start any paintings until we’re on that ship of yours, otherwise the paint would be too wet.  I can sketch out my ideas while Annisyn and I babysit just as easily.”  Beverly smiled. “Thank you.”

Jean-Luc held out his arm to his wife.  “I put my comm badge in my pocket. Shall we?”

Jean-Luc led Beverly away from the main restaurants on the Promenade and towards a small private turbolift.  “Where are we going?”

“Hmm you’ll see.  I wanted your last night on base to be special.”  Jean-Luc placed a kiss on her temple and called up the location he wanted “Stardust Lounge.”  Beverly raised her eyebrows.  “The Stardust? But Jean-Luc...it’s so expensive.....”  Jean-Luc placed a finger over Beverly’s lips. “You’re worth it.  We’re worth it.” 

The Stardust Lounge was located near the very top of the base. In fact, it was even higher than the Ops deck, which was rare on a base.  The restaurant was set in a circle, with 360 degrees of windows wrapping the whole way around for a breathtaking view of the surroundings.   Starships coming in and out of warp as they approached, stars, planets, asteroids...all were on display.   Beverly gasped. “It’s beautiful here. Thank you.”  She pressed a quick kiss to Jean-Luc’s mouth. “Mm, not as beautiful as you.”

The Maître d’hôtel approached the couple.  “Captain and Doctor Picard?”  Jean-Luc nodded and squeezed Beverly’s hand.  It was still a thrill for him to hear her called Doctor Picard.  “Right this way, Sir, Madame.”  Jean-Luc leaned over and whispered in  Beverly’s ear “Should we tell him he should be calling you Sir, too?”  Beverly laughed. “No.  Sometimes, I like to leave my rank behind..... _Captain_.”

“Do you have to say it like that?”

“Like what? _Captain_.”

“So....sultry.”  Beverly turned her head and lightly  bit Jean-Luc’s earlobe and whispered into his ear, “ _Captain_.”  Jean-Luc shivered before turning his attention back to the amused Maître d’hôtel who was trying to suppress his grin at the couple.  “Here you are, Sir, Madame. Our finest view.  Would you like your wine brought to you now?”

“Wine too?”

“Mm, yes. I ordered a bottle ahead.  That would be lovely, thank you.”  Jean-Luc pulled out the chair for his wife and she sat down and took in the breathtaking view out the window. “I know I’ve looked out the viewports for the past six years, but the view from up here is incredible. I feel like we can see everything from here....oh look, Jean-Luc, I can see the _Stargazer_ in her dock!”  Jean-Luc wasn’t looking at the window, he was gazing at his wife. The candle on the table made her red hair shine and glimmer and he couldn’t take his eyes off her. “Jean-Luc?”

“Hmm? Sorry, my love.  I was just admiring you.”

“We’re married now, you don’t have to compliment me.”  Beverly toyed with the cloth napkin on the table, and Jean-Luc reached across the table to clasp her hand. “Beverly...I will never stop telling you how beautiful you are. Being married doesn’t change that....Bev...did Jack not....compliment you?” Beverly refused to meet Jean-Luc’s eyes, but she shook her head as a tear escaped her eye.  Jean-Luc gave her hand a squeeze and rose from his seat to come kneel beside her.  He took her hand once more and brought it to his lips. “I’m sorry, my love.  Please don’t cry.  I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You didn’t.  Jean-Luc, I’m just so happy to finally be with you.” Beverly smiled.  Jean-Luc rose and gave her a kiss before returning to his seat.  “I am too, my love. I am too.”

Beverly and Jean-Luc enjoyed their meal, though Jean-Luc was a little outraged at the cost of the bottle of wine.  It hadn’t even been one from his family’s vineyard and he hadn’t felt it was worth the higher price tag. After the meal, Jean-Luc asked Beverly if she wanted to dance and her eyes sparkled. “But you hate dancing?”  Jean-Luc kissed her hand.  “Ah, but my wife enjoys it, so I will endeavour to cope.”  

He led her out onto the small dance floor where a few couples were swaying to the soft music. “Besides, I quite enjoy holding you in my arms.”  Beverly kissed him then, long and passionately.  Jean-Luc tightened his grip on her waist and Beverly’s arms circled his neck.  She broke off the kiss and rested her head against his shoulder.  Jean-Luc couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face as he held his wife close.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a man approach spinning a young woman.  When they came near, the man reached for Beverly and pulled her out of Jean-Luc’s arms and pushed his companion into Jean-Luc.  Jean-Luc frowned.  Another man,  who just happened to be Lieutenant Anders Milford, danced over with his wife on his arm. “Sir, do you want me to have him removed?”

Jean-Luc chuckled and held the other woman in his arms.  “No, Lieutenant Milford, that won’t be necessary.  The man who just stole my wife is my best friend and first officer, Commander Walker Keel.  I’m now dancing with his girlfriend, Lieutenant Abigail Yugen.”

“Pleased to meet you, Lieutenant.” Abigail shyly smiled. “I’m sorry, _Sir_ , but Wally insisted once my mother told us you were here tonight.” 

“It’s fine, _Lieutenant_.  Can I get you a drink?”  She nodded, and the pair moved towards the circular bar curving around the outer rim of the dance floor.   “Abigail, I told you, in social situations, you don’t need to call me Captain or Sir.”

“I know, but old habits and all...anyway, I really am sorry we’ve interrupted your evening. But you know Wally...”

“Indeed.”  Jean-Luc knocked back the whisky the bartender handed him. “Shouldn’t you go rescue Beverly?”

“Abigail, dear, who do you think needs rescuing?  My dear Beverly...or Walker?”  Abigail studied her boyfriend and friend and could see Beverly was clearly handing it to Walker.  “Erm...maybe I should go over?”

“No, enjoy your drink. He probably deserves whatever Beverly is dishing out.”  Jean-Luc signalled for another drink.  “Trust me.”

“Walker Keel!  How could you!” Beverly’s eyes blazed with fury.

“Geez, Bev. You can go back to Johnny. I’m sorry, alright?  I just thought it would be fun....”

“Fun?  You thought it would be fun to give my son lots of junk food this afternoon?!”

“Oh.  Is that what you’re mad about?” 

“What did you think I was mad at you for?”

“Er...taking you away from Johnny just then.”

“Well, that was pretty rude of you, too. But I swear, if my son gets sick tonight, I’m calling _you_ to clean it up!”

“You wouldn’t!”

“I would!” 

Abigail watched the two. “Do they always fight like siblings?”

“Oh, yes.  If Walker considers your mother his third sister, Beverly is his fourth. I think that’s why everything with Jack has affected him so much...his best friend hurt two of the woman he considers sisters, and he’s the one who introduced Beverly to him.”

“My father is...I don’t even have the words to describe him.”

“I’m sorry, Abigail. I didn’t mean to upset you.”  Jean-Luc gave Abigail a one-armed hug as he leaned against the bar watching his wife and best friend.

“It’s fine.  I still haven’t gone to see him. Maybe I’ll visit his quarters once we’re all on board...if I have time, that is.  I hear my Captain is going to keep me pretty busy setting up my new school” Abigail grinned.  She really was over the moon at her new assignment.  She planned on first setting up her classroom and then once she knew what students she would have other than Wesley, she would develop a curriculum.  Most of the children took their daily lessons via computer to keep them in line with their contemporaries on Earth, so Abigail planned on enhancing their lessons to have some hands on activities. 

“I know you’ll do an excellent job.”  Jean-Luc glanced once again at Beverly and Walker. “Hmm, Beverly seems to have calmed down. Shall we dance over to them and swap partners?”

“Yes, please.”  Jean-Luc took Abigial’s hand and led her in a waltz across the room.  “Walker, you seem to have misplaced your date, but I see you managed to find mine.  Might I have my wife back?”

“Take her. Please.”   Beverly raised her eyebrows. “Charming.”  She leaned over and kissed Walker’s cheek and whispered “If I call you tonight, you better come over.” Walker gulped, but nodded.  Jean-Luc warily eyed the exchange. “Do I want to know?”

“If Wesley gets sick tonight, Walker is coming over to clean it up.”

“I see.  Would you like to finish our dance?”  Jean-Luc took Beverly by the waist and she wrapped her arms around his neck once more. “I would love to.” 

Jean-Luc and Beverly shared several more dances before returning to their quarters and thanking their friends for babysitting. Beverly couldn’t help but notice Annisyn seemed a little subdued, and vowed to speak with her in the morning. She would have asked her right then if she was alright, but Jean-Luc had been teasing her all evening and she was determined to gain the upper hand in the bedroom.  On the other hand...Annisyn really didn’t look well.  Beverly exchanged a glance with Jean-Luc and tilted her head towards Annisyn.  Jean-Luc nodded and headed for the replicator for some tea while Beverly went to change.  As much as he would have liked to take off Beverly’s dress, he had a Lieutenant in need.

Beverly emerged, clad in a sweater and a long skirt.  “Annisyn, do you want to talk?  To us?  Or to me or Jean-Luc alone?”

Suzanne patted Annisyn’s hand. “I think Annisyn could use some family right now.”  Annisyn sniffed and Beverly saw the tears forming in her eyes.  Beverly took a seat next to the younger woman and pulled her into her arms.  “I can’t do this.”

“Do what, Annisyn?”

“Any of this. I can’t be a single mother.  All alone...just me...and a baby.  I won’t know what to do with it.  How can I advance my career while taking care of a baby?”  Annisyn looked up at Beverly. “Do you want it? You and the Captain?”

“Do we want what?”

“My baby.  She’s already related to Wesley.”

“Uhm...” Beverly shot a look at Jean-Luc.  Yes, they wanted more children and of course adoption was a possibility, but Beverly felt as though Annisyn was making a hasty choice.  Up until today, Annisyn had wanted her baby and had been excited to be a mother.  Jean-Luc knelt in front of Annisyn and took her hand in his.  “Annisyn.  I want you to look at me.” 

Annisyn looked up into her Captain’s face.  She felt ashamed crying on his sofa in his wife’s arms. She never had expected her life to turn out like this.  When she first came on board, she had been in awe of the Captain and wanted to impress him, striving to earn her promotion, even if Jack had helped it along.  She had hoped to even make Lieutenant Commander before she turned 25.  But now?  Captain Picard must hate her for what she had done, even if the result was him getting to marry the woman he was in love with.

“I want you to know that Beverly and I are here for you.  Suzanne, Walker, and Abigail are too.  We will help you through this.  If you really don’t want to raise your daughter, then yes, Beverly and I would be happy to.  But are you sure that’s what you want?”

“No, but I don’t want Jack to ever find her.”

“Is that why you want Beverly and I to raise her? You think that if her last name is Picard, Jack will just assume she is my child?” Annisyn slowly nodded.  Jean-Luc exchanged another look with Beverly.  She nodded her consent. “Annisyn, do you want to be part of our family?”

“I’m too old for you to adopt.”

“True. At least, not in a legal sense, but you have to know we consider you part of the family now.  If you want to change your last name, we have plenty to choose from – Howard, Yugen, Keel....Picard....”

“I can do that?  Just...change my name?” 

“Of course you can, my dear.  You can change it to whatever you want!”  Suzanne chimed in from Annisyn’s other side.

“I don’t think I want Commander Keel’s name.”  Jean-Luc chuckled.  “Somhow, I don’t think Walker will be upset by that.”

“Who is Howard?”

“Me.  Well, my maiden name.”  

“And I could use it?”

“Of course.  Although, I don’t think Jean-Luc would be upset if you wanted to become a Picard....” Annisyn blushed. “Wouldn’t that be kinda strange though?  People would think I was the Captain’s...Jean-Luc’s daughter...no offense, Sir.”

“None taken, Annisyn.   I suppose I could have a child your age.  I would have been....well, I would have been twenty-six when you were born...I suppose I was serving on the Stargazer by that point.”

“Did you have any girlfriends then?” Beverly teased, “Your wife was only three!” 

“Yes, thank you for making me feel like a dirty old man, Bev.  I...ah...no.  I didn’t have another girlfriend until a few years later.  Philippa and I....well, let’s say we parted on bad terms when I was still at the Academy, and Marta was only ever a friend...but enough about my reminiscing.  Annisyn, the decision is yours.  Take all the time you need to make it.”

“Thank you, Sir...I will.” Jean-Luc squeezed her hand. “Annisyn, when will you stop calling me Sir and Captain when we’re casual like this?”

“I don’t know.”  Beverly laughed. “At least she’s honest!”

###

Unfortunately for Walker, Wesley was sick in the middle of the night.  It was three in the morning base time when Wesley cried out for his parents and they went in to find him covered in sick.  Beverly immediately called Walker, who knew better than to not respond.   Walker didn’t know how to comfort Wesley, but he was able to get the boy cleaned up and get his bed cleaned up.  Jean-Luc climbed into Wesley’s clean bed with him and rubbed Wesley’s back until he fell back asleep while Walker watched on in awe.

“Johnny, you make it look so easy.”

“I make what easy?”

“Being a father.”

“I don’t think it’s easy, I just....do what comes naturally, I guess.”  Jean-Luc shrugged, not sure where Walker was going with this.

“Nothing came to me. Johnny, what am I going to do if Abby wants to have a baby? I won’t know what to do!”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows at his old friend. “You’re asking the wrong person.  I don’t actually know what I’m doing with this whole parenting thing, either.  I just sort of make it up as I go along.”

“Well, you make it look easy.”

“Uh...Thanks.” Jean-Luc yawned. “I’m going to get some more sleep.  I’m moving the staff meeting to 0900.  Would you let the other senior staff know?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you. See you in the morning.”

Jean-Luc crawled back into bed next to Beverly.  “Everything alright?”

“Wesley’s asleep again.  I think he’ll be alright.” Beverly snuggled closer. “Mm, good.  Love you.”

“I love you too.”  Jean-Luc looked over at Beverly, but she had already closed her eyes and was fast asleep.  He held Beverly tighter and closed his eyes, hoping for a little more sleep before Wesley would wake them in the morning.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Winding down the story. Lots of Annisyn in this one, light on the P/C. Sorry.

When Beverly woke up, she was pleasantly surprised to find herself and Jean-Luc alone in bed. “Computer,” she whispered. “Is Wesley still sleeping?” 

“ _Affirmative_ ”.  Jean-Luc opened his eyes at the computer’s voice. “Is something wrong?”

“No, but our son is still sleeping.”

“Oh, well then,  I think I know what I want to do.” Jean-Luc kissed Beverly and his hands roamed over her body.

 “Mm, you won’t find me objecting...”

###

Annisyn was surprised when she was called to see Walker Keel. She met him in his small office and Walker informed her that since her baby being due soon, she was being offered single instead of shared quarters, and she would be on the same corridor as the Captain and Beverly, and Walker and Abigail.  Annisyn felt a little awkward around the Commander and he could tell.  He reached out a hand and gave Annisyn’s arm a squeeze. “Everything will be fine, Lieutenant.  Now, I have a meeting to prepare for, but I think Abigail is free if you need help moving your belongings.”

“Thank you, Commander.”

Annisyn exited Walker’s office and ran into Abigail.  “Hey Annisyn, I was waiting for you.  Do you want any help moving?”

“You knew I was moving?”  Abigail gave a sheepish grin. “I’m sorry.  Wally told me this morning since he thought you might need some help while the senior staff are having their meeting. “

“Thanks.  Actually, I wanted to talk to you...”

“What about?”  Abigail moved down the corridor towards Annisyn’s former quarters. “Maybe once we’re alone in my new quarters?” 

Moving was easy, since most of Annisyn’s  belongings from the base had been sent directly to her new quarters.  All Annisyn and Abigail needed to do was to pack up one box and one bag worth of items.  Annisyn threw a photo of her and Jack straight into the reclimator without even looking at it, but she kept the only piece of jewellery Jack ever gave her, thinking she might pass it on to her daughter one day.  Once the two were settled in Annisyn’s new quarters, Abigail flopped onto the sofa. “What’s on your mind, Annisyn?”

“Captain Picard...Jean-Luc...sort of offered to adopt me. So did your mom.”  Abigail’s eyes went wide. “Annisyn, that’s fantastic!”

“Is it? Abby, I don’t know if it’s a good idea to let people think I’m the Captain’s daughter!”

“Why not?”  Annisyn frowned. “Wouldn’t people...wouldn’t they talk?  I mean, I’m pregnant with his best friend’s child...”

“Hmm, but who, other than us and Doctor Greyhorse, actually know who the father is?” 

“No one.”

“So you see? It’s perfect. You can be my sister and  call Jean-Luc Papa, and we can teach your daughter to call him Gramps!  Have you thought of a name for her yet?” Annisyn nodded. “I didn’t want it to somehow get back to Jack, but I suppose I can tell you.  Her name will be Katrynska.” Abigail wrinkled her nose.  “That’s a bit of a mouthful.” 

“It was my grandmother’s name.”

“Oh.  Well, how about we call her Katie for short?”

“I like that.  Hmm, I suppose I should start to go by Ann now.”  Abigail gave her a puzzled look. “Why?”

“Well, I don’t want Jack to find us.  Even if I use Picard or Yugen, my first name is still fairly unique.” 

“True, but that’s what makes you...well...you!”  Annisyn looked at her hands. “I guess.  I just really don’t want Jack to find us.”

“Well, why don’t you become Ann Picard legally, but still go by Annisyn to your friends and family?”

“That could work. “  Abigail bounced up out of her seat. “Oh, let’s go tell Jean-Luc and Mom now!”

“We can’t, he’s in a meeting.”

“Hmm.  Computer: Location of Suzanne Yugen?”

_“Suzanne Yugen is in the Captain’s quarters.”_

“Ah, we can tell Bev and my mom! Come on!”

“Wait. Uhm...Abby?  Isn’t this really going to confuse things even more if I call your mom Mom and the Captain Dad?  So, I would be Wesley’s sister kinda but also giving birth to his sister?  Who won’t call his parents Mom and Papa, but would be his Papa’s grandchild?  And what about the implications for your mom and the Captain? If I suddenly change my birth certificate...I’m only two years younger than you and your Mom didn’t divorce Jack until you were four....and Katie will be your Mom’s granddaughter, but your sister AND her ex-husband’s daughter? I’m getting a headache just thinking about all of this.”

“You could call Wally your dad.  You’d still be my sister....but then I might become your step-mother.  Oh geez, this really _is_ going to be a messed up family, isn’t it?”  Annisyn slowly nodded while she was giggling. “Can you imagine trying to explain this to anyone else?”  Abigail joined her in laughing.  “Why don’t we go talk to Mom and Bev and see what they have to say?”

###

Jean-Luc looked around the table at his staff and grinned.  Of course, Gilaad was gone, but with Walker in his place it felt like old times.  It was a shame Jack wasn’t sitting on his other side, but Jack lost that privilege when he started to lie. 

“Now then,  We’ll be shipping out in two days to make the slow journey back to Earth.  I’ve recalled most of the staff so we should be able to spend the next two days preparing, but if anyone wants last minute shore leave, I’m sure we can grant it.

“Some of you might remember Commander Walker Keel.  He will be joining us as my First Officer as Ben Zoma has moved on to command his own small vessel.  One other staff change is my wife, Doctor Beverly Picard, will be serving under Doctor Greyhorse as Second Medical Officer.  My son has been brought on board with us, as has Lieutentant Yugen’s mother, Suzanne, who will be a civilian guest for the journey.” Jean-Luc made eye contact with Walker. “Now, I have to come to some not very good news.  And I trust that you all,” Jean-Luc made eye contact with the rest of the staff seated around the table, “will keep this confidential.”

“Lieutenant Commander Jack Crusher will be back on board. He is conscious; however, he still needs several surgeries.  In addition, we will be bringing him to Earth for him to be released to Starfleet Psychiatry, where he will be psychiatrically evaluated.  Jack has been confined to quarters for the duration of the journey to McKinley, unless he is attending appointments in Sickbay. He will be escorted by two security officers and he is not to speak with anyone other than Doctor Greyhorse and whatever nurse is assigned to him.  If he breaks these rules, he will be put in the brig.  He is not permitted to ask for personal information about anyone on this ship and his access to the ship’s computer has been limited. 

“He will be permitted visitors, but they must be approved by either myself or Commander Keel first.  I want two security officers posted outside his door at all times.” His security chief nodded. Everyone else at the table exchanged glances.  No one wanted to ask what Jack had done to become a patient of Psychiatric, but they were all curious.  Finally, Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Wu spoke up.

“Sir?  What will you be doing about a second officer?”

“Ah, I’m glad you asked Commander.  _You_ will be my interim Second Officer.  If you perform well, it may well wind up permanent. For now, officially, Jack is still listed as Second Officer on medical leave.  I am not permitted to replace him permanently until he is released into Medical’s care.  Any other questions?”  Everyone shook their heads. “Right then, let’s get this ship ready to head to McKinley.  Once we reach the station, we will be able to organize leave as soon as we know how long the repairs will take.”  Everyone rose from the table to return to their duties.  “Doctor Greyhorse?  Could you stay behind? Number One, you too.”

“Sir?  Is this about Jack’s care?”

“No.  Carter...I’ve had a few complaints lately.”

“Complaints, Sir?”  Jean-Luc rested his hands on the table.  “Yes. It seems that you are...how do I put this? Less than accommodating to young women requesting reproductive health care.” 

“Do you mean giving them their implants?”

“Yes.  As well as routine care, I am led to believe.” 

“Sir...I don’t believe young women should be having sex. Why should it be my responsibility to make sure they don’t get pregnant?”

“Because you’re their doctor, Carter.”  Jean-Luc sighed.  “Look, I don’t want to bring this to the medical board, so for the time being, I think it’s best if care of our female crewmembers be left in the hands of Beverly and the nurses.”

“Are you saying all this because you want your wife to be your Chief Medical Officer?”

“No. I’m saying this because I have one pregnant Lieutenant who became pregnant because her implant, which you were supposed to provide, proved to be invalid, and another female crewmember who saw one of the doctors on base to check on the validity of hers because she didn’t want to ask you for help.  How many of the other pregnancies on my ship over the past twenty years were accidents caused by your refusal to update implants? “

“I couldn’t tell you, Sir.  I always advise the female crew members to abstain from intercourse to avoid pregnancy.”

“Carter, that’s simply unacceptable.  I don’t want to put you on notice or contact Medical, but your attitude is making me change my mind.” Jean-Luc saw the defeated look on Carter Greyhorse’s face. “Look, for now, have all the female crew see Beverly for their reproductive health needs.  We’ll discuss this further later.  But if I hear any more complaints...” Jean-Luc let the threat hang in the air.

“Am I dismissed, Sir?”

“No, not yet.  Now we need to discuss Jack.  I assume Doctor Quaice has met with you and explained what kind of continual care Jack requires? “ Carter nodded. “Good.  As I said, he is confined to his quarters.  I will permit him to attend appointments with you in Sickbay, but if you could visit him in his quarters, it might make security a bit better.  Naturally, if he needs to be admitted to Sickbay, he will have guards on him at all times.  And under no circumstances are you to give him details about anyone on board – in particular nothing about Beverly, Abigail, or Annisyn. Especially Annisyn.”

“But Sir, she’s having his child.”

“Yes, I am aware.  However, it is Annisyn’s choice if Jack is kept informed.  A lot has happened since Jack regained consciousness.”

“I understand.”

“Good.  Dismissed.” As Carter Greyhorse left the conference room, Jean-Luc pinched his temples. 

“Headache, Johnny?”

“And a half.   I hope Bev has something in our quarters for this.” Walker grinned. “I’m sure there’s something she could do to relieve the pressure...”

 _“Walker!_ ”

“I’m just saying...”

“Yes, I know what you’re just saying.  I wanted to talk to you about Annisyn, actually.”

“Oh? Is she alright?”  Walker got up and headed to the replicator. “I’m getting a coffee. Want a tea?”

“Yes, please. Thank you.  Annisyn is...less than stellar.  She babysat with Suzanne last night and when we returned she asked if Beverly and I would adopt her baby.”  Walker passed Jean-Luc a glass mug of tea and took a sip of his own coffee. “Adopt Jack’s kid? Well, I suppose the baby will be Wesley’sibling anyway and you and Bev want another child.”

“Quite,”  Jean-Luc inhaled the heady bergamot scent before taking a sip.  “I think she’s panicking about everything that has happened and I...well, I guess I offered to adopt her instead of the baby.”

“Congratulations, Papa.”

“Yes, well, I should also add that Suzanne has offered to adopt her as well.”

“So you and Suz will be her parents?”

“I suppose.  Beverly would be willing, but she’s so close to Annisyn’s age it wouldn’t look believable.”

“She wanted you to adopt the baby because of Jack, didn’t she?”

“Yes. She thinks that if the baby has my surname, Jack wouldn’t be able to find her later on....if Jack knew there was a baby named Picard, the assumption is that he would think it was Beverly and my child.”

“It makes sense.  Do you and Bev want to?”  Walker looked over at his friend. “Naturally, if that’s what Annisyn really wants, we will.  But I think what she really wants is a family to support her.  I think we can do that.”

“Johnny, you’re really starting to go soft, you know that?”

“Hmm. Perhaps it’s Beverly’s influence. I wanted to make you aware of the situation since you might need to process a name change for Annisyn.  Now, I’m going to go find that wife and son of mine....there’s no need for either of us to be on the Bridge right now.  Why don’t you come along?”

###

Abigail rang the chime outside the Captain’s quarters and the door opened when a small voice said “Come innnnnnnnn!”  Wesley was standing by the door and when he saw it was Abigail and Annisyn, he ran towards them and flung himself at Abigail. “Abby! I missed you!  Who dat?”

“Don’t you remember, Wes? This is Annisyn, she’s having our little sister.”

“Oh yeah. Hi Anni...Annis...Annie sin. “ Wesley stumbled over her name.  Good thing she agreed with Abigail to shorten Katrynska’s name.

“Hi Wesley. Where’s your mom?”

“Mommy’s in the bedroom with Aunt Sooz. They’re unpacking and laughing a lot. I’m playing by myself. Wanna play with me?”  Annisyn gave a nervous look to Abigail.  Abigail smiled at Annisyn and knelt down to speak to Wesley. “Wes, we need to talk to your mommy and my mommy first, then I promise Annisyn and I will both play with you, okay?”

“Ok. I’m gonna get out alllllll my connecting blocks!” Wesley ran into his room and they could hear the sound of lots of plastic bricks being poured out onto the floor.  

“Oh geez. Bev is going to kill me....” Beverly appeared in the doorway to her bedroom. “Why am I going to kill you?”

“Wes is dumping all those linking bricks onto the floor.  I told him Annisyn and I would play with him after we talked to you and Mom.” Beverly sighed. “Well, that’s alright.  As long as you help him put them away when you’re done?  Those are a nightmare if you step on them in the dark!  Now, what did you two want to talk to us about?” 

“Well, actually, Annisyn wanted to talk to you and Mom.”  Beverly indicated for everyone to take seats around the living area – she and Jean-Luc had a small square area with two sofas facing each other with single chairs on either end and a low table in the middle.  “Wow, they did an amazing job with the upgrade.”

“They really did.  Wesley’s room is a decent size, and the third bedroom is perfect if we have a baby.”  Beverly glanced over at Annisyn when she said this. “Why don’t I get us something to drink.  Chamomile for you, Annisyn?”  Annisyn nodded.  Abigail hurried up to help Beverly carry the drinks and just as Beverly was asking for the last drink, the door to her quarters slid open and Jean-Luc and Walker entered. Jean-Luc leaned over and kissed Beverly and Walker kissed Abigail. 

“Are we having a party?”  Beverly chuckled. “Annisyn wanted to talk to Suz and me,” Beverly turned back to the replicator. “Tea.  Earl Grey. Extra bergamot.  And...” she glanced over at Walker, who nodded. “Coffee.  Double white.” She passed the men their drinks and they all walked back over to the sofa where the men greeted the other women.  “Can we invade? Or is this a women’s chat only?” 

“N-No, Capt...Jean-Luc.  I need to tell you too.” Annisyn watched Jean-Luc settle onto the sofa next to Beverly and casually drape his arm across her back.  She sighed.  She wanted a relationship like that and thought she had found it with Jack.  Maybe someday...she shook her head to clear it. 

“Jean-Luc,  I think I would like to change my name.” 

“Perfectly within your rights, what were you thinking?”

“Ann Picard.” Jean-Luc’s eyebrows rose. “So then, you...”

“I would like you to adopt me...Sir?”   Jean-Luc grinned and patted the space on the sofa on his other side for Annisyn to move to.  When she sat down, Jean-Luc took his free arm and wrapped it around Annisyn’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Well, then, welcome to the family.  But why Ann?” Annisyn nervously looked over at Abigail.

“She doesn’t want Jack to be able to find her.  If Jack ever came across a woman named Annisyn Picard, he might make the connection, but Ann Picard could be anyone  - a sister, a cousin, a niece, or completely unrelated to you.”

“But – I want my family to still call me Annisyn.”  Jean-Luc smiled at her use of the word family.  He glanced at Beverly who had snuggled up against his other shoulder and she had a huge grin on her face.  “So Beverly, should we tell Wesley he has another sister?”

“Not yet. I think he’s a little too young to really understand everything, and Annisyn’s daughter will still be his sister and that could be confusing.” Abigail snorted. “Uncle-brother. Hey, this makes me a sister-aunt!” 

Annisyn turned to Suzanne. “Suz...I think I would like it if you would be my mother.  Beverly...I hope you don’t mind.”  Beverly beamed. “Not at all.  I think that’s an excellent idea.  Besides, I happen to know Suzanne is itching to be a grandma!”

 “Annisyn, why don’t we file the relevant paperwork before we ship out?  Suzanne, do you want to be named as Annisyn’s mother?” Suzanne put her cup down and folded her hands in her lap. 

“Annisyn, I am honoured to become your mother.  However, I think it’s best if my name isn’t on your legal paperwork....after all, I was still married to Jack when you were born.  We wouldn’t want Jack to ever suspect...well, I think it would be best if we just change your father’s name to Jean-Luc’s.  Is that alright with you?”

Annisyn nodded. “I...hadn’t thought about that. Of course, you’re right.” Annisyn turned to Jean-Luc. “Can we do it now?”  Jean-Luc rose from the sofa and walked over to his desk. “Of course we can.  Why don’t we find out what we need to do?”  Annisyn followed Jean-Luc over to his desk and the two of them became busy scrolling through official documents.  Abigail stood.  “Right. I promised Wesley I would play blocks with him.”  Walker frowned. 

“Oh. I was hoping we...”

“Sorry, Wally. I thought I would play with Wes for a bit then start setting up my classroom. You can stay and play too, if you want?”

“Well, if that’s the best offer I’ll get...”  Abigail swatted him.

Beverly laughed at Walker’s antics.  “If Wesley is going to be occupied, I think I will go with Suz and help her set up her studio.  Wally, it’s the empty quarters across from hers, right?”

“Yep.  The door is set to open for Suz only, though you can give other people access if you want.” Suz nodded. “I’ll add Abigail, Annisyn and Beverly.”  Walker pretended to pout. “Not me or Johnny?”

“Hmm. Johnny, yes.  You?”  She grinned. “We’ll see.”

“Oh, one more thing...Wally, when is Jack coming aboard?”  Bevely bit her lip. She did not want to run into Jack even in the corridor on his way to his quarters.

“Oh, you don’t have to worry, Bev. He’s being beamed directly to his quarters.  Jean-Luc and I will be meeting him there in about an hour.” 

“Right. Abby, if I’m not back, will you bring Wes to your mom’s studio for me?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks.”  Beverly walked over to the corner where Jean-Luc and Annisyn were working and leaned down to give Jean-Luc a kiss goodbye and then to Annisyn’s surprise, Beverly pressed a kiss to the crown of Annisyn’s head . “See you soon, step-daughter.  Welcome to the family.” 

Beverly and Suzanne made their way down the corridor to Suzanne’s guest quarters. Across the hall, Walker had arranged for the single quarter to be emptied of nearly all the furniture so Suzanne could set it up to be her studio.  “How do I get an easel?  I know the replicator will give me canvasses, brushes, and paints, but can it do an easel too?”

“You know, I’ve never tried.  Computer, how can we get an easel?”

_“You must visit the replication centre on Deck four.”_

“Ah.  Deck four it is, then.”

###

Jean-Luc and Walker were waiting in Jack’s quarters when he materialised.

“Ah, good. You’re here.  Computer: Restrict access to this door to the following people:  myself, Commander Walker Keel, Doctor Carter Greyhorse, and all security personnel. “

_“Access granted.”_

“Computer: Remove access for Lieutenant Commander Jack Crusher.”

_“Access removed.”_

“Great. Your computer access has already been limited to what a guest would be offered, and your replicator is restricted to unlimited food and drink, basic clothing and toiletry needs, and limited quantities of approved entertainment items. “  Jack stared back at his best friend.

“Which are?”

“You’ll find a list on the PADD on your desk.”  Jack glanced over at his desk. It was brimming with PADDs. “Err, which one?”

“I guess you’ll just have to figure that one out, Jack.”  Jack sighed.  “Johnny...”

“You will address your Captain properly.”

“Not even my friend anymore, huh? Bet you don’t reprimand Wally when he calls you Johnny.” 

“Jack...I do not think our friendship is repairable, at least not for a long while.  You have done a great many things that have hurt people I am close to.  You hurt a child for god sake.  No, Jack.  I don’t think we are friends anymore.”  Jean-Luc then spun on his heel and walked out of Jack’s quarters with Walker trailing behind. 

“Johnny, don’t you think you’re being a little harsh on Jack? I mean...you did wind up marrying Beverly, so it can’t all be bad...” Jean-Luc sighed. “Walker, I realise this.  But I think Beverly would have divorced Jack over Annisyn anyway and we would have still got together.”

“And if he hadn’t gotten Annisyn pregnant?”

“Well, I guess I wouldn’t have a new daughter, but I like to think Beverly and I still would have found our way to each other.”

“You’re probably right. Hey, Johnny, if Annisyn is now your daughter, this means you’re going to be a grandfather when her kid is born!”

“ _Merde._ ”


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I received an anon comment on FFN on the age difference between Jean-Luc and Bev. Yes, he is 19 years older than her. It’s canon. Jean-Luc was born in 2305, Bev was born in 2324. Walker was a contemporary of Jean-Luc’s, so I’ve assumed he’s the same age. Jack was the anomaly - He’s portrayed to be young when he appeared on TNG as a corpse and in Wesley's message, but in the Autobiography of JLP, it’s stated he came onto the Stargazer as a young Ensign when Jean-Luc became Captain. Jean-Luc was 28 (2333) when he became a Captain, so we can make the basic assumption that Jack was in his early 20s (assuming graduating from the academy at age 21/22) in 2333. This makes him older than Beverly by over ten years. I will post the timeline (so far) in a note on the last chapter of this story. I didn’t want to post it any sooner due to spoilers.
> 
> (The second comment told me I write Wesley bad. My only response to that is that I taught five year olds and Wesley has been created based on my experiences with my students. Yes, he's smart, but that doesn't mean he's going to speak like an adult OR know how to pronounce things. Kids have lisps that linge sometimes until they're as old as 7 or 8. It happens.)
> 
> PS: I'm away at the weekend to hang out with some of my SS Centaur friends, so don't expect anything until Monday night at the earliest. Maybe Sunday night, but I'm leaving my laptop at home!

Beverly awoke to the chiming of the comm unit in the bedroom. “Picard here....both of us...Who is this?”  Beverly glanced over at her husband who also had woken up from the chime.

_“Beverly!! I think...I think I’m having contractions!”_

“Annisyn, calm down sweetie, and tell me what’s going on.”

_“It’s like a really sharp pain and I want to push the baby out of me right now!”_

“Do you know how many you’ve had so far?”

_“No.  But it started when I tried to go to bed a few hours ago.”_

“Right.  I assume you’re still in your quarters?”

_“Yeah.”_

“Stay there.  Jean-Luc and I will be there as soon as we can get dressed. Picard out.”  Jean-Luc had already begun to gather clothing together for both him and Beverly as soon as Annisyn said she was having contractions.

“What about Wes?”

“This is when I almost miss being on the base. There was a babysitting service for emergencies.”

“Hm...Picard to Bridge.”

_“Bridge here, Sir.”_

“Lieutenant Picard has gone into labour,  how quickly can you send someone to our quarters to watch Wesley?”

_“Ensign Torba is on his way.”_

“Thank you. Picard out,”  Jean-Luc pulled on his trousers. “There you go. Ensign Torba is already on his way. I bet he gets here by the time we’re done getting dressed.”  He was.  The doorchime was going off just as Beverly was throwing her feet into her boots. 

“Thank you, Ensign. Wesley is sleeping....Naturally, I don’t know how long labour will last, but if Wesley wakes up he may have his beloved Kirkpops and either myself or his teacher will be back to get him ready for school.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Around the corridor, other doors were opening . Suzanne rushed out of her guest quarters still clad in her nightgown, and Abigail was exiting her and Walker’s tying a dressing gown around her waist.  Beverly smiled when she saw the two other women.  “Morning, ladies.  I’m just going to see how our dear Annisyn is before deciding if she is in labour or merely false labour...you can come along.  You should have time to get dressed if we are transferring her to sickbay.”  Beverly performed the medical override for Annisyn’s quarters.  Jean-Luc hung back, not wanting to get in the way of Beverly’s examination until Annisyn very softly said, “Papa?”

A grin stretched from one side of Jean-Luc’s face to the other. “I’m here, love.  Let Beverly examine you, alright?”  Annisyn nodded.  “Mom?” 

“I’m here too, Sweetheart.  Abigail, too.”  Suzanne stepped forward for Annisyn to grasp her hand.  Suzanne looked over at Beverly. “What do you think, Doctor?”

“I think that a certain Lieutenant is in labour and should have told me earlier about her contractions sooner.  She’s two weeks early, but that’s not unusual.  I’m going to order a hovergurney.  You and Abigail can go get dressed.  Is Wally awake too?”  Abigail nodded. “There’s a young Ensign looking after Wesley.  If Walker doesn’t want to come to sickbay, ask him to keep an eye on Wes instead?” Suzanne gave Annisyn’s hand one last squeeze. “I’ll be back.” 

Jean-Luc moved forward for Annisyn to clasp his hand and she gave it a hard squeeze as her next contraction rolled over her. “Ow.  That’s a tight grip there, Annisyn.” Beverly laughed. “Consider it practice for when I have a baby. If she breaks your hand, I can fix it, don’t worry.”  A look of panic crossed Jean-Luc’s face. “Break?” 

“Oh yes, it’s quite common for women to break the hands of the person providing them with support while they give birth.  Traditionally, it’s the father of the baby, but....”

“I think  I can handle it for Annisyn.”

###

Several hours later, Beverly was handing a pink bundle to Jean-Luc. “Congratulations,  Grand-père.”  Jean-Luc gazed down at the baby girl with tears in his eyes. “Beverly.  I thought the next baby I would be holding would be ours, but...she’s so perfect.  How’s Annisyn?”

“She’s napping.” Jean-Luc placed a gently kiss on the baby’s forehead. “Hello, Katrynska. Welcome aboard _._   I’m your....Beverly, I can’t be her Grand-père!”

“Why not?”

“Because Grand-père is for old men. Surely, I’m not old...”  Beverly leaned over and kissed him. “Of course you’re not old.  But if Annisyn is your daughter, that makes her daughter your grandchild....grandpa.”  Jean-Luc grumbled.  “I suppose. But couldn’t she just call me Papa?”

“Grand-papa, perhaps.”

“Good grief, Bev, that sounds even more pretentious.  Say, has her grandmother held her yet?”  Jean-Luc grinned.  If he was going to be grandpa, at least  Suzanne would be grandmother.  “Oh, and doesn’t this make you a step-grandmother?” 

“Well, yes, I suppose it does.”  Beverly cooed at the baby in Jean-Luc’ arms.  “Oh, Jean-Luc, I can’t wait for us to have another.”  Jean-Luc wiggled his eyebrows at his wife. “You know what they say about practice....”  Beverly smirked.  “I’d smack you, but I don’t want to jostle Katie.”

“Hmm, I must remember that. Hold a baby, my wife can’t smack me.”  Suzanne wandered over from where she was waiting in the small office Greyhorse had grudgingly given Beverly three weeks ago. “Is this my granddaughter?”  Jean-Luc beamed. “It is indeed, Grandma.”  Jean-Luc carefully handed Katie to the waiting arms of her grandmother.  “No, I think I will be Nana.” 

Jean-Luc turned to Beverly. “See? Why can’t I be Papa?”

“Because your children call you Papa and it would be confusing.”

“So? It’s not like this family doesn’t already have confusing names for each other. What’s one more?”  Beverly sighed. “You’ll have to ask Annisyn what she wants. Now, I’m going to go file Katie’s birth certificate.  Mother: Ann Picard, Father: blank. “

“Make sure you use my codes to seal the record, too.”

“Of course.  Do I have permission to forge your signature?”  Jean-Luc groaned. “Er...Yes, but try not to let anyone else know you have that permission.  I do have to keep the appearance of command here....”  Beverly leaned up and kissed Jean-Luc. “Of course. You’re in charge, _Captain_.”  Abigail snorted. 

“Mom, let me hold my sister-niece.” 

“Darling, do you even know how to hold a baby?”

“No, but...I can learn.  If Walker wants to have a baby....”  Suzanne raised her eyebrows at her daughter. “He does, does he?” 

“Well....we’ve talked about it.”  Abigail adjusted her arms the way her mother instructed her to.  “Jean-Luc, how did you know how to hold a baby?”

“I held Wesley when he was only a few days old. I brought the ship to the base so Jack could...well, it’s best if we not bring him up. Suffice it to say, I was the first of Beverly’s friends to hold Wesley and she made me practice with a doll before she would give me Wesley.”  Abigail snorted again and the noise woke up Katie, who began to wail. “Oh shit. No, wait, I didn’t mean to say that!  Katie, you didn’t hear that! Uhm...Mom....Jean-Luc?  Now what?” 

“Soothe her.”

“Soothe?”

“Don’t let her know you’re panicking.  Gently sway from one side to the other.  You only startled her, and I think we should let Annisyn get some more sleep.”  Suzanne eyed her daughter who was now very gingerly shifting her weight from one foot to the other while saying “Shhhh”  to the baby.  Jean-Lu crept over to Annisyn’s bed. Annisyn turned her head towards Jean-Luc. 

“She’s beautiful, Annisyn.  Just like her mother.  I’m glad you allowed me in your life.” 

“No, thank you, Jean-Luc...Papa....I didn’t know what I was going to do and I was prepared to let Katie go, but...how can I? She’s perfect.” 

“She is indeed. Right, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to be your Captain for a minute here.  Lieutenant, I assume you are taking Maternity leave?”

“Uhm...Yes, Sir.”

“We will be back at McKinley base in five weeks, after which I will be granting shore leave for the crew while the ship is repaired.  Do you want to be recalled when the ship is ready again?”

“Er...Yes, Sir, provided I can find care for my child.” Jean-Luc grinned. “Something tells me that won’t be a problem.  I might even try to convince Suzanne to stay on board as a resident artist.”

“That would be nice.  Can you bring Katie back?  I don’t like her being out of my sight.”

“Of course.” Jean-Luc motioned for Suzanne and Abigail to come over.  Abigail carefully walked with the baby in her arms and handed Katie back to Annisyn.  “She’s so tiny! I love her!”

“Remind me to call you when she’s screaming down my quarters at two AM.”  Abigail tried to laugh, but she wasn’t sure if her friend was serious or not.   Annisyn carefully lowered a corner of her sickbay gown to breastfeed Katie, and Jean-Luc respectfully looked away.  Abigail, on the other hand, was fascinated. 

“How do you...”

“I don’t know.  I think it’s just instinct.” 

“Does it hurt?”

“Not really.  It kind of tickles.”

“Oh, wait until she gets teeth.  That was when I had to stop breastfeeding Wes.  He used to bite!”  Beverly had re-joined the group.  Jean-Luc leaned down to her ear “I don’t hear you complaining when _I_ bite.”  Beverly swatted him.  “No baby. I can swat.”   Beverly looked down on Annisyn. “Looking good.  Mother and baby are both healthy.  I know you don’t want to be here any longer than you need, so I am prepared to release you and Katie back to your quarters...Naturally, I expect you’ll have a steady stream of visitors!”  Annisyn nodded, and when Katie was done feeding, she covered herself back up. “You can look at me again, _Papa_.” 

“Only my daughter for three weeks, and already she’s as sarcastic as her step-mother.”  Beverly rolled her eyes.  “Right, _Papa_ , why don’t you get a hoverchair for Annisyn?”

“Oh, no, really, I can walk...”

“Yes, you can, but it’s a long walk back to your quarters and you just gave birth.  Listen to your Doctor. Or step-mother. Take your pick.”

“Ok, _Mom._ ”  Beverly coloured.  “I guess I deserved that.”  Jean-Luc reappeared with a hoverchair.  “Deserved what?”

“Oh, I’m mothering Annisyn again.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows at Beverly.  “Did she call you Mom again?”

“She did.”

“Well, I could punish her, but as she’s just handed me this adorable bundle....” Jean-Luc cooed over Katie.  Beverly rolled her eyes again. “Really, Jean-Luc. You’re going quite soft in your old age....” Beverly helped Annisyn into the hoverchair and Jean-Luc placed Katie back in her arms.

“Let’s get you home.”

###

Jean-Luc and Beverly entered their quarters and hoped to get a few hours of sleep, but Wesley was wide awake and cheerily eating some cereal at the table and Beverly groaned.  Walker was sitting at the table opposite Wesley with a cup of coffee in front of him and his head resting on the table.  He looked up when they entered.

“Annisyn?”

“She and the baby are fine and settling into her quarters. Why do you look tired?”  Walker shot a look over to Wesley.  “Wesley...he woke up shortly after I dismissed Torba.”

“Why didn’t you tell him to go back to bed?”

“Er...I could have done that?”  Beverly laughed.  “Yes...you _are_ the adult, you know.”

Jean-Luc groaned and walked over to the replicator. “Two coffees. Double strong.”  He passed a cup to Beverly.  “I think we’re going to need this today.” 

“Papa, Uncle Wally said Katie was born today. Can I go play with her?”  Jean-Luc smiled and ruffled his hair. “Not yet, Wes.  You may go see her, but I don’t think she’ll be ready to play for a while.” 

“Oh.  Then can I go read now?”  Jean-Luc consulted the clock on the wall. “You have three hours before school starts. I’ll let you know when you need to get ready.”

“’Kay!”  Wesley ran back to his bedroom, picked up his book, and sat in one of the squishy bean bag style chairs Beverly put in his room for reading.

“Reading? The kid likes to read?”  Walker shook his head. “I didn’t know he could read. Isn’t that....early?”

“Walker,why do you think Abigail is working with him on an accelerated program?  Wesley is incredibly bright for his age. Don’t you remember he took apart a phaser once?”  Walker nodded. “Wesley’s problem is, of course, he has the intelligence of an older child, but still the body and...what did you call it, Bev?”  Beverly didn’t hear the question as she had closed her eyes on the sofa. “Well, it has to do with his age.  He can grasp concepts, but he can’t pronounce the words.  He’ll get there.  Anyway,”  Jean-Luc glanced over at Beverly and chuckled. “There’s nothing exciting going on today, is there?”

“Not really.  Still moving slowly back to McKinley. I don’t think we could do anything if there was a crisis.”

“Right then. After Wesley goes to school, I guess I’ll be in my ready room.”

“Taking a nap?”

“Hmm. “

Jean-Luc carefully lifted up Beverly’s legs and placed them on his lap while she was still fast asleep.  Jean-Luc spoke softly. “Computer: Set alarm for two hours, forty-five minutes.” 

“ _Affirmative.”_

Jean-Luc knew Wesley would wake them if he needed anything, so he tilted his head against the back of the sofa and closed his eyes. 

After Wesley was away to his lessons for the day with a very tired Abigail, Jean-Luc went to take a shower.  He was utterly delighted when a few minutes into his shower his wife decided to join him. 

“Are you here to save time showering or...?”  Beverly wickedly grinned.  “Well, it _has_ been a while.”

“Two whole days is not a while.”  Jean-Luc placed a kiss on Beverly’s lips. “You knew what you were getting into when you married a starship Captain.”

“Mm, yes, but we’re not actually _on_ a mission right now, are we?” Beverly trailed her hand down Jean-Luc’s chest.  “Your wife has needs...”  Beverly’s mouth joined her hand and she flicked at Jean-Luc’s nipples with her tongue causing him to shudder and back up against the wall.  “Beverly,”  Jean-Luc grasped her hips. “You _are_ a wicked woman.”  Beverly grinned, and Jean-Luc surprised her by changing their positions so she was the one with her back pressed against the wall.  “I love you.” 

“I love you too.” Her lips found his as he hoisted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. 

They were drying off from their shower when Beverly brought up the subject of more children. “Jean-Luc...I removed my implant over a month ago. My cycle should be back to normal soon.  Are you ready for a baby?” Jean-Luc reached for Beverly’s hands and held them in his.  “Whenever you are.  Though, I have to admit to being a tad selfish and wanting you all to myself...well, and Wesley.” 

“Hmm. Yes, a baby would be pretty demanding.  Are you sure you can manage it with all your responsibilities? Especially now we have Annisyn and Katie in our lives?”

“My love, we’ll make it work.”  Jean-Luc gave her a devilish grin.  “We might need to practice...what time are you due in Sickbay?”

“Mm, no set time today.  I told Carter I would be in eventually...why?”

“Well, my love, it appears the Captain doesn’t have much to do today, either....and we’re alone...Wesley is safely at school for another six hours...”  He reached out and peeled the towel off of Beverly before pulling her close.  He lightly nipped her ear.  “Mmm, but Jean-Luc, we just had a shower...”

“Then I guess we’ll just have to take another one....” 

###

Jack was sitting in his quarters. He was bored.  A few of his old friends were granted permission to visit him, and they would sometimes play chess or poker, but they always left after a few hours and they never gave Jack any of the information he wanted.  His computer was restricted, and even with some of his background in computing, he couldn’t hack his way into it giving him access.  “Computer:  Location of Lieutenant Annisyn Lobo.” 

_“There is no one on board with that name.”_

“Can you give me the location of Abigail Yugen?”

 _“Access denied.”_  Jack pounded on the desk. “Locate Wesley Crusher.”

 _“There is no one on board with that name.”_   Jack frowned.  Why had the computer given him a different response for Abigail?  Did Beverly change Wesley’s name to Picard?  “Computer: Locate Wesley Picard.”

 _“Access denied.”_ Jack pondered this.  “Annisyn must have changed her name after all. Unless she really did leave the ship or stayed behind on Starbase 32.  Computer:  Can you tell me the crew rotated off at Starbase 32?”

 _“Access denied.”_  Jack frowned.  “But I’m the second officer...I should...Computer, who is in charge of crew rotation?”

“ _Commander Walker Keel, First Officer and Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Wu, acting Second Officer.”_

“Acting?  Computer: Who is the current second officer?”

“ _Lieutenant Commander Jack Crusher, currently on medical leave.”_  

“But....I’m Jack Crusher.  Computer: What is my security clearance?”

_“Alpha One.”_

“Alpha One?!  It should be Gamma Three!”  Jack grumbled to himself.  Apparently, Jean-Luc hadn’t been lying when he said he had removed his clearance.   

“Computer: Begin personal log.  I....oh never mind.  Computer, cancel that.”  Jack drummed his fingers on the desk.  He carefully typed in a line of code that should get around his security clearances but then the computer screen flashed “Access denied” across the screen.  Jack sighed.  He didn’t really care about Annisyn or the child she was having, but he did want to at least know where she was and when the child was born.  Wasn’t that his right as the father?  And Abigail and Wesley were his children too, surely he had the right to talk to them or see them? 

“Computer: Can you connect me to Doctor Crus... Doctor Picard?”  He grimaced.  It was hard to swallow the fact that his best friend had finally managed to marry Beverly. 

Beverly’s face filled the screen. _“What do you want, Jack?”_

“Well, hello to you too, Bevvy.”  Beverly flinched at the nickname. “No how are you?”

 _“Fine. How are you?”_  Beverly appeared to be exasperated with him.

“Bored, Bev.”

_“Can’t help you there.”_

“You could let Wesley visit me.”

_“No.”_

“Why not? Did Johnny forbid it?” 

Beverly’s eyes blazed. _“No. I did. Jack...you never showed any interest in Wesley before.  In fact, can you tell me the number of times you saw him? I can._ Three _.  Do you know how many times the_ Stargazer _visited Starbase 32 since his birth?_ Fifteen. _Fifteen times, Jack. What were you doing the other twelve times, hmm?  No, perhaps I really don’t want to know.  You only want to see Wesley because we told you you couldn’t, plain and simple.  Besides which, Wesley doesn’t want to see_ you!”

“You don’t know that. He’s only five.”

_“Five, but he knows who cares about him.  When he’s older, he of course would have our permission to contact you if that’s what he chooses, but we will not force him to interact with you.”_

“So now it’s ‘we’? Since when did Johnny get a say in my son’s life?”

 _“Since he willingly accepted Wesley as his own son and adopted him.”_ Colour drained from Jack’s face. “He what?”

_“Adopted Wesley.  Officially.  Wesley is Wesley Robert Picard.  Mother: Beverly Picard, Father: Jean-Luc Picard.”_

“But...he’s mine.”

 _“Biologically, sure. But I ask you again. When did you ever care about him before?”_ Beverly stared had at her monitor.  Jack remained silent. _“Thought so.  I don’t have time for this. Picard out.”_ The screen went blank and Jack stared at it dejectedly.  Had he really lost any chance of having his name carry on? 

###

Abigail was loving her new job.  The children all called her Miss Abby instead of Lieutenant and she was enjoying setting her curriculum based on the children’s needs and not by what a head teacher told her she had to teach.  Wesley, at age five, was studying science and technology with a pair of  eleven-year-olds,  and she had an eight-year-old struggling to read, so she was able to work one-on-one with her while the other children used the computer simulated lessons.  In her charge she also had another five-year-old, and three teenagers.  Once a week, the children all took art together with her mother, and she had found an Ensign who could play the piano to help out with having a music class, too.  Three days per week she took them all to the gymnasium for physical education, and she managed to rope in one of her old mates from security to help teach the children martial arts. 

But the best part of her job was having “weekends” free.  With the exception of lesson planning, she would always have two glorious days off each week.  She was spending her current day off visiting her newest sister...or should she say, sisters. 

Annisyn was enjoying motherhood so far.  She had changed so much in her last month of pregnancy after being accepted as part of the family, and Abigail felt lucky to have a sister.  Of course, she had Beverly, but even though five years separated them, Abigail tended to view Beverly as more of a second mother than a sister.  Abigail was holding one-week-old Katie while Annisyn took a well-needed shower. 

Annisyn hadn’t realised just how hard it was going to be to be a single parent of a newborn.  Thankfully, she had both Beverly and Suzanne who had both been in similar situations and they were a big help, but she hated it when everyone left and she was all alone in her quarters with Katie.  Annisyn toyed with the idea of asking Jean-Luc and Beverly if they could come live with them and Wesley so she wouldn’t be alone, but she didn’t want to impose...even if Jean-Luc had agreed to be her adopted father.  Still though, while she quickly shampooed her hair and rinsed it off, she thought she would ask him when he stopped by tonight. 

Annisyn could hear Katie crying in the other room while she quickly towelled off and wrapped a silk dressing gown – a present from Beverly – around her waist and tied the belt firmly.  She came out into the living area to see Abigail with a panicked look on her face.  Annisyn couldn’t help herself. She laughed.

“Glad you think this is funny. I don’t know why Katie is crying.”

“Hmm..did you check her nappy?”

“Her what?”

“Nappy. Err...diaper?  Papa,” Annisyn blushed, “Papa called it a nappy, but Beverly called it a diaper.”

“It still embarrasses you to call Jean-Luc Papa, doesn’t it?” Annisyn nodded. “Don’t let it. I know he secretly likes it.”  Annisyn grinned.  “How do I tell if she went?”

“Uhm...lift her to your face and sniff.” Abigail did as instructed and made a face. “Oh. Ew.  Yep. Definitely went.  Now what?”

“You change her.”

“I’ve never done this before.”  Abigail started to pass the baby back to Annisyn.  “Oh no, you’re learning, Sis. I had to learn from your mom and Beverly how to do it. Your turn!”

“This is why I teach from age four up,” Abigail grumbled, but followed Annisyn over to the changing table and carefully followed Annisyn’s instructions.  “Yep. Beverly wasn’t kidding when she said taking care of someone else’s baby is the best form of birth control.  I don’t know how you’re doing it,  Annisyn.  You’re bloody marvellous.”


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please see the comments/review for a long response from me to a previous comment.
> 
> We’re winding down. In fact, I think this is the last chapter, save for the appendix with the timeline. But they will be back!

Wesley was looking down at four-week-old Katie who was sleeping in his mother’s arms. “Mommy, was I that small?”

“You were indeed. “

“Nuh-uhh.” Beverly smiled at her son.  “Want to help me put Katie to bed and then we’ll get out some old photos?  I might even have a few with Papa in them.”

“Yeah!” Wesley exclaimed, then looked over at his half sister and lowered his voice. “I mean, yeah!”  Beverly chuckled at her son.  He really was quite understanding, even if he still wasn’t entirely sure why Katie was his sister, but not his parent’s child...or why Katie’s mother called Jean-Luc Papa like he did.  But, he was willing to accept Katie as his sister. 

Annisyn and Katie had moved into Beverly and Jean-Luc’s quarters two weeks ago.  Wesley had been moved back into the smaller bedroom so Annisyn and Katie could have the larger room.  It was better for Annisyn, and their quarters had the extra room. Suzanne had offered for Annisyn and Katie to move into her guest quarters, but she only had one sleeping area that wasn’t even a separate room, so the decision was made.  Of course, Annisyn still felt awkward when she would see Jean-Luc wearing his dressing gown and having the extra people in their quarters made making love more difficult, but they all were managing.  Plus, it meant Beverly got to spend more time with her “step-grandchild”. 

Beverly had offered to put Katie to bed so Annisyn could enjoy a meal outside of their quarters with Abigail and Suzanne and as she lowered Katie into her crib, she became a bit wistful and hoped she would become pregnant soon.  She activated the mobile above the crib and set the compute to monitor Katie before taking Wesley’s hand and leading him back out to the living room. 

Beverly didn’t have many printed photos, preferring to keep everything digital in case of an emergency, so she grabbed a PADD and called up her personal files.  She picked a handful of photos of Wesley when he was a baby – nearly all featuring Jean-Luc as well – and settled down with him to show him how small he once was.

###

“This has been so much fun.  Thanks Abby, thanks Suz. It’s too bad Papa and Walker had bridge duty, or we could have brought Beverly along, too.”  Annisyn grinned at her dinner companions. The evening had been wonderful, and just the little break Annisyn had needed.  Not that she didn’t love Katrynska to bits, but it did get a little boring eating dinner in her quarters every day.  She had hardly been out of their quarters at all except for a few trips to the gymnasium at Beverly’s suggestion.  She was glad there was a swimming pool, even if it had been a small one. 

Of course, people were talking about her because of her new last name, but she didn’t care.  Obviously, they knew Jean-Luc was now married to Beverly, so they just assumed he had found out he had fathered Annisyn, who was now going by Ann,  when he was younger, and no one bothered to fix the rumours. Jean-Luc felt for Annisyn’s sake, it would work out better for her if people did assume he was her biological father.   

Most of the crew hadn’t even known who she was to begin with, other than her colleagues in stellar cartography and a few of the other Ensigns and Lieutenants who had been part of her intake class.  Naturally, no one knew who the father of her baby was, and she was going to keep it that way. 

“We’ll grab Bev another night.  If not now, then once we get back to Earth....” Abigail trailed off. “Oh, I suppose I don’t really know where we’ll all be.  Ann, are you going with us to Pacifica?”  Abigail was careful to use Annisyn’s new name just in case anyone overheard and word got back to Jack Crusher somehow.  Annisyn grinned at her new best friend. “Yep!  Papa made the arrangements.  He even managed to find a childminder for Katie so I can go out too!” 

“Oh, that will be brilliant! But do me a favour, and give her the night off at least once and get Wally to babysit?  He keeps thinking babies are easy and I want him to experience an evening with one to prove him wrong.”

“So...no babies yet for you, Abby?”  Suzanne looked pointedly at her daughter and waited for a reply.  “No, Mom.  I told Wally I wanted to get married first, but I think it’s too soon for a wedding, don’t you?  We’ve only been dating for a few months.”

“Papa and Beverly got married after ten weeks.”

“Yeah, but Ann, Papa, I mean, Jean-Luc and Beverly had been in love for years!”  Suzanne raised her eyebrows at her daughter. “Since when did you call Johnny Papa?”

“Uhm...usually only around Wesley so he doesn’t get confused.”  Suzanne grinned. “What des Johnny say?”

“He cringes. Though, I really don’t know why. I mean, Ann is only two years younger than me.” All three women laughed.  “Poor Johnny.”  Suzanne stood from the table. “Anyway, ladies, while I enjoy having a meal with my daughters, I really do need to get back to the studio. I’m in the middle of a painting I can’t wait to finish.” Annisyn grinned at being called Suzanne’s daughter.   She didn’t call Suzanne Mom often, but tried to make the effort.  It was a little easier with Jean-Luc, since Wesley was always around calling him Papa.  “Goodnight, Mom.”  Abigail stood to give her mom a kiss on the cheek. “I’m going to go head to the bridge and see what Wally and Jean-Luc are up to. Ann, want to come along?”

“Er...I kind of...actually miss Katie.”  Suzanne beamed. “I’ll walk you back.”

###

Walker and Jean-Luc, it turned out, hadn’t been doing much.  The trip back to McKinley was absolutely boring and out of the ordinary, but as Captain and First Officer they still were required to sit their shifts on the Bridge, though more often than not if they both were on duty they retreated to Jean-Luc’s ready room and played chess.  When Abigail entered the bridge,  Walker and Jean-Luc were sitting in their chairs, staring ahead at the darkened view screen.

“Anything interesting going on, Captain?  Commander?”

“Nothing at all, Lieutenant.  What brings you to the bridge?”

“Well, Sir, I noticed it was close to the end of Commander Keel’s shift and I thought I would walk back to our quarters with him.”  Jean-Luc grinned.  It was hard when your family and friends served together, but Abigail had learned if she was on the bridge to use proper protocol. 

“Well, in that case, Commander, I suppose I can dismiss you.   It’s not like we’re doing much here.  I can wait for Commander Wu to brief her.”

“Thanks, Johnny!”  Jean-Luc rolled his eyes. Walker, it seemed, had still not managed to learn proper protocol after all these years. 

Walker and Abigail strolled hand in hand through the corridor, pausing occasionally to share a kiss.  “How was your dinner with Suz and Ann?”

“Oh, we had a great time, but Ann missed Katie so we broke up the evening.  But next time, you or Jean-Luc need to be around to watch the kids so Beverly can come with us too.” 

“Babysitting Wes  I can handle, but babysitting an actual baby?”  Walker gave his girlfriend a look.  “Yes, Wally. Babysitting an actual baby.  You know, if you want us to have one, you’re going to have to learn how to take care of them.”

“Oh. Uh...I guess I thought that...I would be off on my ship and you would....”  Abigail smacked him in the chest.  “Fat chance, Wally.  Just because Bev and my mom both did it, doesn’t mean I will. Besides, Bev said she won’t be separated from Jean-Luc next time.”

“Is Bev pregnant?”

“Not yet. At least, not to my knowledge.  But I know she wants to have one.”  Abigail leaned against her boyfriend. “But I’m not ready yet.”  Walker tightened his grip around Abigail’s shoulder. “I won’t pressure you.”

“Thank you.”  Abigail leaned up and pressed a kiss to Walker’s lips. “Did you and Jean-Luc eat anything while on duty?”

“Hm? Oh, we just replicated a few sandwiches. Nothing fancy.”

“I see.  Fancy desert?”  she winked and sauntered down the corridor to their quarters, swaying her hips from side to side.  Walker grinned and slowly followed behind.

###

When Jean-Luc entered his quarters he was surprised to find it quiet.  Annisyn’s door was closed, as was Wesley’s. Jean-Luc briefly wondered if Beverly had been called away when she appeared in their bedroom doorway and took his breath away. 

Beverly had changed into a red...something.  Jean-Luc wasn’t entirely sure what to call it.  It had a bra top, but gauzy material hanging from it with a part in the middle, revealing her smooth stomach.  He followed the gauzy material down to where it ended just shy of her hips.  A tiny, sheer triangle covered her russet curls, and a band across her hips held suspender straps for a pair of silky stockings.  He followed the line of her stockings down her long, dancer legs to her feet clad in a pair of shiny high heels.  Beverly leaned against the doorframe. “Hi,”  she breathed out.

“H...Hello, yourself.  What brought this on?”  Beverly twirled for him, revealing the back of the knickers was a thong.  “No reason.  I was browsing a catalogue for some things to take on our honeymoon...do you like?”  Jean-Luc let out a low growl and reached for his wife.  He devoured her lips and walked her backwards into their room.  When the door slid shut, he broke off from kissing Beverly long enough to command the door to lock.  He pressed his forehead against hers. “What do you think, my love?” 

###

“Begin docking procedures.” 

“Aye, Sir. Clamp one, ready.”  The ship lurched slightly as the docking clamp grasped onto the side of the saucer.  Jean-Luc glanced over at Walker, who grinned back.

“Clamp two, ready.”  The ship lurched to the other side as the second clamp grasped the ship. 

“Clamp three, ready.  Gangway deployed.  Sir, we are now docked with McKinley.”

“Excellent work.”  Jean-Luc strode into his ready room with Walker at his heels to contact the Quartermaster. 

The conversation was quick.  The _Stargazer_ would need to be there for eight weeks for the new nacelle to be built and attached. After speaking with headquarters, Jean-Luc had secured shore leave for all of the crew who wished to take it.  He also secured a large shuttle for his use, and planned on using it to take everyone to Pacifica for his and Beverly’s honeymoon.  The shuttle would be cramped, but the trip would only take five days, so he was sure they could all handle it.  Before he left his ready room, he also contacted the planet and arranged to rent a large beach house for the whole family.

With a jolt, Jean-Luc suddenly realised he and Beverly didn’t actually have a place to live, so he contacted his sister-in-law.  As much as he and his brother were still feuding, they were family. Marie assured him there was room for the three of them in addition to Annisyn and Katie.  Marie also extended an invitation to Walker, Abigail, and Suzanne, but Walker thought they might return to Suzanne’s home in Connecticut.

###

Jack Crusher surveyed his quarters.  He had been ordered to pack everything into crates as he would not be returning to the ship and everything except for one small valise would be sent to his parent’s home in Connecticut.  He stood in the centre of his quarters as ordered and waited for the transportation beam to take hold.  He would be moved first to a shuttle, and then to Starfleet Medical where he would begin a psych evaluation as well as undergo the surgeries needed to repair his damaged organs.  Jean-Luc hadn’t even bothered to come say goodbye.  Jack frowned as the transporter beam took hold of him and whisked him away from his home for so many years.

###

“Walker, you’ll meet us in La Barre in one week?”  Beverly hugged her old friend close and kissed his cheek.  “Of course, Bev.  Besides, I don’t think Abby would let me forget. She’s itching to see the vineyard!”

“France sounds so romantic!”

“Sweetheart, you realise we’ll be in La Barre, not Paris?  Jean-Luc lives closer to Switzerland than Paris.”  Abigail’s face fell. “Oh.”  Beverly reached out and patted her friend’s arm. “Don’t worry, it’s a short shuttle ride away. You can still go see Paris.”  Abigail grinned.  “Brilliant.”

“Are you sure all my new paintings will be sent to my home, Jean-Luc?   I want to get them into a gallery and don’t want them damaged!”  Jean-Luc shook his head at Suzanne. “Quit worrying.  I promise, no harm will come to your paintings and they will be delivered to your house tomorrow by one of the Yeoman’s.  We’re moving them by shuttle to protect them.”  Suzanne beamed at her friend. “You are good.  Bev, he’s a good man!” 

“I know.”  Beverly came over and gave her new friend a hug. “You’ll come with Walker and Abby?”

“Don’t you think I’ll be a bit of a fifth wheel?” 

“I’ll be there too,” piped up Annisyn. She was wearing five-week-old Katie in a sling across her body.  “Well, then I guess I just have to come along. We can keep these four in line.”  Nearby, Wesley giggled. “I’ll be there too Aunt Sooz!” 

“You will? Have you ever been to France before?”  Wesley shook his head.  “But Papa said he’ll teach me how to ride a horse!”  Beverly raised her eyebrows at her husband. “He did, did he?”  Jean-Luc pretended to hide behind Suzanne. “Wesley asked what I did when I was a boy....I rode horses....”

_“Jean-Luc....”_

“Yes, my love?”

“Wesley is five...”

“Well, what if I ride the horse with him?”  Beverly looked at Jean-Luc with apprehension. “You’ll hold onto him the whole time?  And control the horse?”

“I promise!”  Beverly shook her head. “Fine, then I suppose it would be alright.”

“Yay! Thanks Mommy!”

Jean-Luc watched as Walker, Abigail, and Suzanne stepped onto the transporter pad and gave the command to energize before turning to his family.  “Right then, are we ready?”  Annisyn nodded nervously and Wesley nodded vigorously.  “Wes, where’s your bunny?”  Wesley held up his hand, showing he was clutching his bunny.

“Right.  Coordinates set?”  The transporter chief nodded.  Jean-Luc stepped onto the pad with his family and wrapped his arms around Beverly’s waist.  “Then...Energize.....”

###FIN###

....for now....


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Appendix with the timeline!

2305 – Jean-Luc Picard born; Walker Keel born

2309 – Jack Crusher born; Suzanne Yugen born

2324 – Beverly Howard born

2328 –  Jack marries Suzanne; Abigail Crusher born to Jack & Suzanne

2330 – Annisyn Lobo born

2333 – Jean-Luc becomes Captain of the Stargazer with Walker as his first officer.  Jack comes on board as a favour to Walker

2333 – Jack divorces Suzanne; Suzanne changes hers and Abigail’s last name to Yugen

2340 – Annisyn’s parents die in an accident

2342 – Walker introduces Jean-Luc and Jack to Beverly; Beverly begins to date Jack

2347 – Beverly becomes pregnant

2348 – Beverly and Jack marry; Wesley Crusher born

2350 – Jack begins an affair with Annisyn Lobo

2353 – Annisyn becomes pregnant

2353 – Events in ‘Consolation’ take place

2353 – Jack and Pug go outside to attempt to cut off one of the _Stargazer’s_ Nacelles. Pug dies in the resulting explosion and Jack falls into a coma.

2353 – Beverly divorces Jack; Beverly & Jean-Luc marry; Walker and Abigail begin dating

2353 – Jean-Luc “adopts” Annisyn and she changes her name to Ann Picard; Katrynska (Katie) Picard born


End file.
